GIFT 


GfllPT 
Mrs.    L.    R.    Copeland 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  THIRD 
ARMY  CORPS  UNION 


COMPILED  FROM  THE  ORIGINAL  RECORDS 

BY 

WILLIAM  P.LSHREVE 

TREASURER 
1885 IQIO 


BOSTON,  MASSACHUSETTS 

1910 


EDWARD  LIVINGSTON  WELLING 


"  You  filled  up  the  gaps  in  our  files, 
Strengthened  the  wavering  line, 
'Stablished,  continued  our  march." 


HOOPER   PRINTING  COMPANY 
74  INDIA  ST.,   BOSTON 


TOLD  BY  THE  SECRETARY. 


THE   life  of  the  Third  Army    Corps  Union 
is  nearing  fifty  years  and  in  all  human  prob 
ability  it  will  not  be  many  more  before  the 
last  Veteran  comrade  will  celebrate  the  anniver 
sary  alone.     It   will,   therefore,   be   interesting  to 
recall  the  story  of  the  organization  and  the  forty- 
five  reunions  that  have  been  held  while  yet  there 
are  a  goodly  number  who  remember  them  with 
thankful  enthusiasm. 

To  whom  first  came  the  idea  of  forming  a 
society  that  should  be  of  mutual  benefit  to  its 
members  under  the  conditions  imposed  by  the  war 
in  which  we  were  engaged,  nowhere  appears  in  the 
record,  but  we  know  that  on  the  second  of  Sep 
tember,  1863,  the  following  named  officers  met  at 
the  Head  Quarters  of  the  First  Division  of  the 
Third  Army  Corps,  at  Sulphur  Springs,  Warren- 
ton,  Virginia.  If  other  than  a  verbal  invitation 
was  issued,  we  do  not  know,  but  it  is  fair  to  assume 
that  the  initiative  may  be  accorded  to  Major 
General  David  Bell  Birney,  who  commanded  the 
Division.  He  was  chosen  to  preside  at  the  first 
meeting  and  Colonel  William  R.  Brewster,  who 
commanded  the  Second  Brigade,  Second  Division, 
was  the  Secretary.  The  others  present  were  Bri 
gadier  General  James  B.  Carr,  First  Brigade, 
Second  Division;  Brigadier  General  Gershom 
Mott,  Third  Brigade,  Second  Division;  Colonel 


C.  H.  T.  Collis  (One  hundred  and  fourteenth 
Pennsylvania)  commanding  the  First  Brigade, 
First  Division;  Colonel  L.  D.  Carver  (Fourth 
Maine)  commanding  the  Second  and  Colonel 
Regis  De  Trobriand  (Fifty-fifth  New  York)  com 
manding  the  Third.  Although  Colonel  Carver 
was  prominent  during  the  first  three  months  of  the 
life  of  the  Union  his  name  does  not  appear  on  the 
roster  probably  for  reasons  that  will  appear  later. 
He  was  mustered  out  of  the  service  on  the  sixteenth 
of  December,  1863,  for  disability. 

After  the  preliminary  matters  were  done  with, 
General  Carr  offered  this  resolution:  "That  an 
organization  be  formed  of  which  all  the  officers  of 
the  old  Third  Corps  shall  be  the  members." 
'That  a  committee  of  three,  to  which  shall  be 
added  the  President,  be  appointed  to  draft  by 
laws,  constitution,  etc.,  and  report  on  the  sixth 
inst."  On  this  committee  were  appointed  Gen 
erals  Carr  and  Mott. 

The  following  was  voted  and  the  first  meeting 
adjourned  to  September  sixth.  "Resolved,  That 
the  commandants  of  Regiments  in  the  First  and 
Second  Divisions  be  invited  to  meet  with  us  at 
our  next  meeting.  Resolved,  That  this  organiza 
tion  be  known  as  the  Third  Corps  Union." 

It  will  not  escape  the  notice  of  many  that  the 
first  resolution  adopted  by  this  group  of  officers 
spoke  of  the  "Old  Third  Corps"  and  that  in  a 
following  one  the  officers  of  the  First  and  Second 
Divisions  only  are  named.  This  while  not  in 
tended  to  reflect  in  any  way  upon  the  men  of  the 
Third  Division,  but  simply  to  confine  the  member 
ship  of  the  Union  to  those  who  had  belonged  to 


the  Third  Corps,  "As  we  understand  it,"  the  corps 
as  it  was  up  to  the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  neverthe 
less  is  said  to  have  given  offence  to  General  French, 
who  was  at  that  time  commander  of  the  Corps, 
much  to  the  disgust  of  the  men  who  wore  the  red 
and  white  diamonds.  It  was  at  this  time  that  he 
issued  the  wonderful  order  that  created  no  little 
amusement  and  did  not  help  to  raise  him  in  the 
estimation  of  those  he  intended  to  score.  It  will 
not  be  out  of  place  if  reproduced  here. 

"The  General  now  commanding  the  Corps  of 
Hooker,  Sickles,  Berry  and  as  his  dear  friend 
dares  to  raise  the  shroud  of  the  chivalric  Kearny, 
needs  nothing  further  to  convince  the  brave  and 
intelligent  soldiers  of  the  Corps  that  the  efforts  for 
preference  over  the  reputation  of  brother  soldiers, 
no  matter  what  state  or  what  army  may  claim 
them,  when  they  have  proved  true  and  faithful  to 
our  Union  and  to  the  glorious  flag,  ought  and  must 
be  admitted  to  the  position  to  which  by  their 
bravery  they  are  entitled." 

Nevertheless  General  French  became  a  member 
of  the  Union  wearing  the  badge  numbered  eighteen. 

At  the  second  meeting,  September  sixth,  there 
were  present  thirty-six  officers.  Among  the  names 
of  those  mentioned  many  are  familiar  to  us  today, 
as,  for  example,  Egan,  Sides,  Craig,  Stoughton 
and  Danks.  The  permanent  organization  was 
effected  by  the  election  of  the  following  officers. 
For  President,  General  Daniel  E.  Sickles.  Vice- 
President,  General  David  B.  Birney.  Secretary, 
Captain  James  C.  Briscoe.  Corresponding  Secre 
tary,  Major  H.  Edwin  Tremain.  Treasurer,  Gen 
eral  Gershom  Mott. 

[     3     ] 


The  Constitution  was  adopted,  providing  for 
the  usual  exigencies  of  an  association  and  fixing 
upon  the  fifth  day  of  May  in  each  year  for  the 
Annual  meeting.  The  distinctive  feature  of  the 
order,  that  does  not  appear  in  our  constitution 
today,  was  the  following  declaration.  "The  ob 
ject  of  this  association  is  a  benevolent  one,  to 
see  that  the  remains  of  any  of  the  members  who 
shall  die  in  the  service  are  properly  interred,  also 
should  the  family  of  any  member  dying  in  service, 
or  taken  prisoner,  be  in  need,  it  shall  be  aided 
from  the  funds." 

Provision  was  made  for  "preparing  a  suit 
able  badge,"  with  the  declaration  that  "All  offi 
cers  who  have  participated  meritoriously  in  any 
of  the  battles  in  which  the  Third  Corps  has  been 
engaged  shall  be  eligible  to  membership".  This 
was  found,  before  the  constitution  was  printed  to 
be  a  little  too  broad  and  the  following  was  substi 
tuted:  "All  officers  who  have  belonged  to  the 
Third  Army  Corps  and  shall  have  participated 
in  any  of  its  battles,  shall  be  eligible  to  member 
ship." 

A  Board  of  Directors  was  elected  to  serve  until 
the  time  of  the  Annual  meeting,  as  follows.  Gen 
erals  Carr,  Mott,  Graham,  Ward  and  Colonels 
Brewster  and  De  Trobriand,  and  Captain  Ran 
dolph  of  the  Artillery  Brigade. 

The  President  was  directed  to  select  a  com 
mittee  of  thirteen  to  draft  by-laws  for  the  govern 
ment  of  the  association,  the  same  to  be  submitted 
at  the  next  meeting.  Of  that  committee  not  one 
is  living  today  and  four  of  the  names  do  not  appear 
on  the  roster.  Colonels  Tippen,  Carver,  Meriam 

[    4    ] 


(Sixteenth  Massachusetts,  killed  at  the  North 
Anna,  May  twenty-third)  and  the  quartermaster 
of  the  Eleventh  Massachusetts,  George  Forrest. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  twenty-seventh  of  Septem 
ber,  the  committee  reported  a  set  of  By-Laws 
that  were  adopted  and  with  the  constitution  there 
was  ordered  printed  one  thousand  copies.  The 
fee  for  initiation  was  fixed  at  ten  dollars  and  the 
dues  at  six.  There  was  one  by-law  providing 
for  a  Court  Martial  of  any  member  against  whom 
charges  shall  be  made. 

At  the  meeting  on  the  thirtieth  of  September 
members  were  elected  to  the  number  of  seventy- 
five,  twelve  of  whom  were  officers  of  the  Division 
and  Brigade  staff.  The  others  were  distributed 
as  follows  among  the  regiments  of  the  Corps. 
Berdan  Sharp  Shooters,  seventeen.  Ninety-ninth 
Pennsylvania,  fifteen.  Third  Maine,  ten.  Fourth 
Maine,  five.  One  hundred  and  twenty-fourth 
New  York,  eight.  Eighty-sixth,  New  York,  eight. 

A  design  was  submitted  by  the  committee  on 
badges  and  was  rejected,  the  committee  being  in 
structed  to  procure  another.  At  the  following 
meeting,  October  fifth,  provision  was  made  for  a 
certificate  of  membership. 

A  week  later  the  army  was  making  its  way 
back  to  Centerville,  and  the  next  meeting  is  re 
corded  as  at  Headquarters,  Licking  Creek,  Novem 
ber  fifth.  Much  more  business  than  usual  was 
transacted,  or  it  may  have  been,  which  is  more 
probable,  that  the  report  was  more  in  detail.  The 
design  of  the  badge  was  decided  upon,  the  com 
mittee  on  certificate  was  given  permission  to  select 
the  design,  three  hundred  copies  of  the  Army  and 

[     5     ] 


Navy  Journal  were  ordered  for  distribution  among 
the  members,  the  Secretary  was  directed  to  ascer 
tain  from  every  member  of  the  two  divisions  the 
names  of  the  battles  in  which  he  had  been  engaged 
and  that,  with  every  application  for  membership, 
some  one  battle  with  the  Corps  be  named.  Gen 
eral  Gilbert  Marston,  at  Point  Lookout,  Va.,  was 
to  be  notified  that  his  name  will  be  inserted  in  the 
list  of  Brigadiers  promoted  from  the  Corps. 

Before  the  next  meeting  the  Mine  Run  cam 
paign  had  been  accomplished.  December  fifth  the 
name  of  General  Henry  Prince  appears  as  the  pre 
siding  officer.  Two  vacancies  in  the  Board  were 
announced  caused  by  the  muster  out  of  Colonel  De 
Trobriand  and  the  transfer  of  General  Graham 
from  the  Department.  These  vacancies  were  filled 
by  the  election  of  Colonel  Byron  R.  Pierce,  Third 
Michigan,  and  Colonel  J.  H.  Madill,  One  hundred 
and  forty-first  Pennsylvania.  Eighteen  new  mem 
bers  were  elected  and  for  the  first  time  the  death 
of  a  member  was  mentioned.  "Colonel  Brewster 
announced  that  he  had  made  arrangements  for  the 
removal  of  the  body  of  Captain  McDonough,  of 
the  Third  Excelsior,  (Seventy-second  New  York) 
killed  at  Locust  Grove,  November  twenty-seventh, 
and  asked  that  the  bill  be  presented  to  the  Treas 
urer."  Colonel  Brewster  also  moved,  "That  the 
authorized  embalmers  for  the  Union  be  Brown 
and  Alexander  of  Washington."  Although  the 
name  of  Captain  McDonough  is  the  first  to  appear 
in  the  report  of  the  Secretary  as  killed  in  battle, 
we  shall  find  in  the  report  of  the  Treasurer  that 
a  benefit  was  paid  in  behalf  of  Colonel  Trepp  one 
day  earlier. 

[    6    ] 


At  this  point  in  the  record  there  are  some  score 
of  blank  pages  left,  as  if  there  was  some  matter 
that  was  expected  to  be  written  in.  As  Colonel 
Briscoe  steps  down  and  out  as  the  Secretary,  it 
would  seem  as  if  room  was  intended  for  the  names 
of  the  members  that  had  been  elected  since  the 
meeting  of  December,  for  from  the  evidence  of 
the  Treasurer's  books  there  must  have  been  three 
hundred  and  forty-seven  members  enrolled  up  to 
December  first,  1863. 

At  the  meeting  of  January  fifth,  1864,  the 
resignation  of  Captain  Briscoe  was  accepted,  as 
Recording  Secretary,  and  J.  Theodore  Calhoun, 
the  Surgeon  in  Chief,  was  elected  to  the  vacancy. 
This  ended  an  episode  of  which  little  was  prob 
ably  known  outside  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  the 
particulars  of  which  if  told,  would  account  for 
many  errors  and  omissions  in  the  records.  At 
this  meeting  the  records  of  the  former  one  were 
not  to  be  found  and  there  is  evidently  an  attempt 
to  make  amends  for  the  failure  by  doing  over 
again  some  of  the  work  of  the  past.  Members 
were  elected,  Captain  A.  Judson  Clark  was  chosen 
a  member  of  the  Board,  in  place  of  Captain  Ran 
dolph,  the  Treasurer  was  authorized  to  pay  two 
hundred  dollars  each  to  Mrs.  Trepp  and  Mrs. 
McDonough  and  the  bill  of  the  Army  and  Navy 
Journal  for  thirty  dollars.  The  quarterly  report 
of  the  Treasurer  is  mentioned  as  read,  but  not 
incorporated  in  the  record. 

At  the  meeting  of  February  fifth,  1864,  members 
were  elected,  a  mass  of  routine  business  transacted 
and  a  disposition  shown  to  tinker  the  by-laws, 
the  same  as  has  been  in  evidence  ever  since, 

[     7     ] 


cropping  out  at  every  meeting  up  to  1906.  A 
committee  was  appointed  to  collect  for  preservation 
in  the  archives  of  the  Union,  a  history  of  Regi 
ments,  Batteries,  Brigades  and  Divisions  of  the 
Corps.  The  approach  of  more  active  business, 
the  making  of  history  instead  of  the  recording  of 
it,  prevented  this  committee  from  ever  making  a 
report.  The  Secretary  was  directed  to  call  upon 
Captain  Briscoe  for  a  list  of  members  and  all  pa 
pers  relating  to  the  association. 

Just  previous  to  this  meeting  the  first  lot  of 
badges  were  received,  but  the  certificates  of  mem 
bership  were  not  ready,  although  the  Treasurer 
offered  a  bill  that  he  had  received,  requesting  an 
advance  of  two  hundred  dollars  for  them,  which 
he  was  ordered  to  pay. 

At  the  meeting  of  March  fifth,  the  name  of 
M.  F.  Webb,  Additional  Paymaster,  was  proposed 
for  membership  and  after  much  discussion  the 
result  of  which  was  two  in  his  favor,  he  was 
rejected. 

A  meeting  on  the  fifteenth  of  March  received 
the  report  of  the  committee  on  the  revision  of 
the  by-laws  and  accepted  it,  but  what  was  the 
nature  of  the  report  the  records  do  not  show, 
owing  probably  to  the  absence  of  the  Secretary, 
in  whose  absence  Captain  Clark  acted  pro  tern. 
Among  the  names  offered  as  new  members  is  that 
of  General  Charles  K.  Graham,  which  would  sug 
gest  an  attempt  to  correct  the  records,  as  he  was 
one  of  the  first  directors.  General  French  was 
also  elected,  but  how  his  eligibility  was  shown  is 
not  stated,  probably  derived  from  the  battle  of 
Wapping  Heights.  An  order  was  given  to  print 

[     8     ] 


one  thousand  copies  of  the  constitution  and  by 
laws.  If  this  and  the  former  order  was  carried 
out,  it  would  be  curious  to  know  what  became  of 
all  of  them. 

At  the  meeting  of  April  seventeenth,  1864,  the 
question  of  the  eligibility  of  Paymasters  to  mem 
bership  was  again  introduced  and  after  more 
debate  Majors  McBlair,  Johnson  and  Webb  were 
elected. 

General  Birney  read  a  letter  that  he  had  re 
ceived  from  E.  R.  Tremain  of  New  York,  as 
treasurer  of  a  fund  contributed  by  the  Stock  Ex 
change  members  for  the  relief  of  the  sick  and 
wounded  of  the  Third  Corps.  No  mention  is  made 
of  the  acceptance  of  the  money,  of  the  amount 
given  nor  of  what  disposition  was  made  of  it.  The 
records  of  the  Treasurer  do  not  disclose  that  he 
had  the  disposition  of  it.  The  genesis  of  this  fund 
if  not  indeed  the  genesis  of  the  Third  Army  Corps 
Union  itself,  is  explained  by  a  letter  written  by 
Mr.  Tremain  to  his  son,  dated  July  nineteen,  1863, 
which  he  has  permitted  to  be  printed  in  connection 
with  this  story  at  the  end  of  this  chapter.  From 
that  it  will  be  seen  that  the  movement  may  be 
traced  back  into  the  thought  of  our  wounded 
General,  who  while  on  his  back  and  receiving  every 
care  possible,  sent  a  contribution  to  help  his 
wounded  soldiers. 

General  Ward  and  Colonel  Brewster  were  ap 
pointed  to  make  arrangements  for  the  annual 
meeting,  on  the  fifth  of  May,  which  would  indi 
cate  that  no  immediate  movement  of  the  army 
was  anticipated.  This  committee  reported  on  the 
twenty-fourth  but  no  hint  of  it  is  spread  on  the 

[     9     ] 


record  other  than  that  the  Secretary  is  directed  "to 
send  to  each  Brigade  director  a  copy  of  such  part 
of  the  report  as  does  not  conflict  with  the  consti 
tution."  The  treasurer  was  directed  to  keep  ten 
badges  of  the  Union  on  hand. 

Needless  to  say  that  the  Annual  Meeting  of 
the  Society  did  not  come  off,  but  the  annual  meet 
ing  of  the  Blue  and  the  Gray  was  called  in  the 
place  of  it.  As  at  Williamsburg  and  at  Chancel- 
lorsville,  so  now  in  the  Wilderness  the  Third 
Corps  on  the  fifth  of  May,  1864,  faced  the  enemy. 
No  more,  however,  the  Third  in  name,  although 
the  men  still  wore  the  diamond  badge  of  red  and 
white,  for  they  were  marching  nominally  under 
the  trefoil  of  the  Second  Corps,  into  which  they 
had  been  incorporated.  If  the  trinity  was  really 
emphasized  under  the  union  of  the  trefoil  with 
the  diamond  it  has  never  been  any  solace  to  recall 
the  occurrence. 

Now  came  the  days  when,  if  ever,  the  Union 
was  to  demonstrate  its  value  by  caring  for  its  dead 
and  wounded,  and  forge  in  the  fierce  heat  of  battle 
the  bonds  that  bind  the  living  to  each  other  today. 

It  was  not  until  the  investment  of  Petersburg 
that  the  next  meeting  was  held,  on  the  fourth  of 
July.  As  usual  it  was  at  the  headquarters  of 
General  Birney  and  an  interesting  feature  of  the 
meeting  for  us  of  later  years  is  that  it  marked 
the  first  appearance  of  our  incomparable  Secre 
tary,  Colonel  Edward  Livingston  Welling.  Hence 
forth  the  reports  were  not  only  complete  but 
something  more.  Not  dry  detail  only  but  alive 
with  patriotic  enthusiasm. 

The   returns   of  the   election    for   officers    and 

[    10   ] 


directors  held  this  day,  (so  the  record  runs)  were 
canvassed  with  the  following  result.  President, 
General  Daniel  E.  Sickles;  Vice-President,  General 
David  Bell  Birney;  Recording  Secretary,  Surgeon 
J.  Theodore  Calhoun;  Corresponding  Secretary, 
Surgeon  E.  L.  Welling;  Directors,  Generals  Ger- 
shom  Mott;  Colonel  Byron  R.  Pierce;  and  Robert 
McAllister.  The  last  named  was  designated  as 
"Division  director"  but  what  was  the  distinction 
is  unknown  today. 

The  business  that  followed  showed  all  too  well 
the  work  in  which  we  had  been  engaged  two 
months.  It  is  best  to  summarize  it.  Bills  were 
approved  for  embalming  the  bodies  of  Captain 
James  McDermott  and  John  Phelan,  both  of  the 
Seventy-third  New  York,  and  Captain  LeFort  of 
same  regiment.  Remittances  were  ordered  sent  to 
Mrs.  LeFort,  one  hundred  dollars;  and  Mrs.  Mc 
Dermott,  fifty  dollars;  Mrs.  Patrick  Nolan,  seventy- 
five  dollars;  Mrs.  S.  T.  Sleeper  (Eleventh  New 
Jersey)  one  hundred  dollars.  The  annual  dues 
were  reduced  from  five  dollars  to  three  dollars. 

August  fifth,  1864.  The  business  was  chiefly 
the  consideration  of  applications  for  relief  of  fami 
lies,  most  of  which  were  laid  over  for  investigation. 
One  hundred  dollars  was  ordered  paid  to  Mrs. 
William  C.  Meriam  and  Mrs.  George  Harvey 
(Third,  Maine). 

The  present  owners  of  certificates  of  membership 
will  be  surprised  to  learn  their  mercantile  value 
from  the  bill  of  Hatch  &  Co.,  presented  and  laid 
on  the  table,  for  four  hundred  and  thirty-seven 
dollars,  not  including  two  hundred  paid  previously. 
This  and  subsequent  meetings  were  at  the  head- 

t   n    ] 


quarters  of  General  Mott,  owing  to  the  assignment 
of  General  Birney  to  the  command  of  the  Tenth 
Corps  Army  of  the  James. 

September  fifteenth  the  meeting  was  marked  by 
the  return  of  General  De  Trobriand  who  was 
elected  a  director,  having  been  assigned  to  com 
mand  the  First  Brigade.  (It  will  be  remembered 
that  since  the  second  week  of  May  the  two  divi 
sions  had  been  one,  being  consolidated  because 
of  losses).  Application  was  made  for  admission 
to  membership  of  officers  of  the  Ninety-third, 
New  York,  that  had  been  lately  sent  to  the  divi 
sion,  but  the  request  was  refused  as  violation 
of  the  constitution.  Another  evidence  of  the 
imperfection  of  the  roster  was  evidenced  from  the 
vote  to  recognize  the  membership  of  Surgeon  Or 
pheus  Evarts,  of  the  Twentieth  Indiana,  "he  hav 
ing  paid  the  initiation  fee,  but  by  some  oversight 
his  name  does  not  appear  in  the  list  of  members." 

September  thirteenth.  The  meeting  was  pre 
sided  over  by  General  Birney,  his  corps  being  in 
the  Petersburg  trenches.  Colonel  Brewster  of 
fered  for  membership  the  name  of  Colonel  (Major) 
Julius  Hayden,  Tenth  U.  S.  Infantry,  serving  on 
the  former  Third  Corps  staff  as  Commissary  of 
Musters.  As  his  name  is  not  on  our  roster  he 
probably  failed  to  accept  the  honor.  So  many 
bills  for  embalming  were  approved  that  it  would 
be  encroaching  upon  space  to  enumerate  them 
here.  The  vote  passed  at  a  former  meeting,  re 
fusing  membership  to  officers  of  regiments  that 
had  joined  the  division  since  the  Corps  was  discon 
tinued  in  May,  was  reconsidered,  rescinded  and 
Captain  Walter  W.  Braman  and  Lieutenant 


Simon  D.  Newcomb  of  the  Ninety-third  New 
York  were  elected  members. 

October  twenty-second.  The  record  of  this 
meeting  is  a  repetition  of  mortuary  statistics  that 
are  in  the  main  like  those  of  the  former  meetings 
and  like  those  that  follow,  until  the  Army  was 
disbanded. 

In  this  way  only  are  the  deaths  of  members  per 
petuated  in  the  records,  it  being  manifest  that  no 
resolutions  could  be  written,  under  such  circum 
stances.  Two  officers,  however,  were  mentioned 
on  this  day  whom  all  will  remember,  Colonel 
Calvin  A.  Craig,  One  hundred  and  fifth  Penn 
sylvania,  killed  on  the  sixteenth  of  August,  and 
Lieutenant  Colonel  George  W.  Meikel,  Twentieth 
Indiana,  killed  on  the  twentieth  of  August,  men 
who  had  both  become  noted  in  the  now  small 
division  for  their  efficiency  and  courage.  Surgeon 
Calhoun  resigned  and  Colonel  Welling  was  elected 
to  the  vacant  office,  his  being  filled  by  Captain 
Edwin  B.  Houghton  of  the  Seventeenth  Maine. 

The  death  of  General  Birney  was  announced, 
he  having  died  on  the  eighteenth,  in  his  home  at 
Philadelphia,  whither  he  had  gone  on  the  tenth. 
A  committee  was  named  to  prepare  resolutions 
upon  his  death,  the  first  of  the  kind  in  the  records 
of  the  Union  and  it  will  be  quite  in  keeping  to  give 
them  here,  in  their  order,  as  they  are  spread  in 
full  upon  the  records.  The  committee  was  De 
Trobriand,  Pierce  and  Brewster.  This  is  the  last 
time  Colonel  Brewster  is  mentioned.  He  was 
mustered  out  soon  after,  his  term  of  service  having 
expired,  as  Brevet  Brigadier. 

A  large  number  of  members  mostly  from  the 

[     13     ] 


new  regiments,  were  elected  after  the  passage  of 
the  following: — "That,  in  consideration  that  this 
Division  was  permitted,  after  the  Old  Third  Corps 
was  temporarily  broken  up,  to  retain  its  badge  and 
its  flag,  and  in  consideration  of  the  severe  engage 
ments  of  the  late  eventful  campaign,  in  which  we 
have  fought  as  a  division,  and  in  further  consid 
eration  of  the  bravery  which  the  above  regiments 
have  evinced,  fighting  side  by  side  with  the  veter 
ans  of  the  Third  Corps,  we  do  consider  them  as 
members  of  the  Old  Third  Corps  and  as  entitled 
to  the  privileges  of  the  society. " 

On  motion  of  General  Pierce,  General  Mott 
was  elected  as  Vice  President  to  fill  the  vacancy 
made  by  the  death  of  General  Birney. 

November  fifth,  General  De  Trobriand  for  the 
committee  reported  the  following  resolutions: — 

"WHEREAS,  It  has  pleased  Almighty  God  to 
bring  to  an  end  the  earthly  career  of  Major  Gen 
eral  David  Bell  Birney,  who  died  in  Philadelphia 
on  the  eighteenth  of  October,  1864,  from  disease 
contracted  during  the  hardships  and  privations  of 
more  than  three  years  campaign  in  the  field,  and 

"WHEREAS,  During  all  that  period  the  noble 
and  faithful  service  of  said  General  Birney  is 
closely  identified  with  the  glorious  record  of  the 
Third  Army  Corps,  either  as  Brigade  or  Division 
Commander,  and 

"WHEREAS,  All  that  the  casualties  of  war  and 
insalubrities  of  climate  have  left  under  arms  of  the 
Third  Army  Corps  is  now  included  in  this  the 
Third  Division  of  the  Second  Corps,  fairly  and 
fully  represented  by  the  association  known  as  the 

f    14    1 


Third  Corps  Union,  of  which  General  Birney  was 
the  Vice  President,  therefore, 

"RESOLVED,  That  in  the  death  of  General 
Birney  we  sorrowfully  deplore  the  loss  of  a  thorough 
patriotic  citizen  and  accomplished  gentleman,  as 
well  as  of  a  most  gallant  soldier  and  highly  effi 
cient  Commander. 

"RESOLVED,  That  his  upright  character,  his 
noble  spirit,  his  indomitable  energy,  in  the  line  of 
duty  and  his  self  sacrificing  to  the  sacred  cause  of 
the  Union,  entitle  him  to  the  grateful  memory  of 
the  country  for  which  he  gave  up  home,  family, 
fortune  and  life. 

"RESOLVED,  That  we  deeply  sympathize  with 
the  grief  of  his  bereaved  family,  the  welfare  of 
which  will  remain  always  a  matter  of  great  con 
cern  among  us. 

"RESOLVED,  That  a  copy  of  the  above  reso 
lutions  be  forwarded  to  Mrs.  General  Birney  as 
a  true  expression  of  the  feeling  of  the  officers  and 
men  of  this  command." 

A  letter  was  read  from  Captain  Charles  H. 
Graves,  who  accompanied  the  General  to  Phila 
delphia,  but  it  was  not  incorporated  in  the  report. 

November  nineteenth,  1864,  there  was  a  meet 
ing  at  the  "Jones  House ".  After  the  routine 
business,  already  too  fully  dwelt  upon  perhaps, 
the  following  resolution  was  voted.  "That  we 
regard  with  favor  the  proposition  of  Surgeon 
Orpheus  Evarts,  Twentieth  Indiana  Veteran  Vol 
unteers,  Surgeon  in  Chief  of  the  Third  Division, 
to  prepare  and  publish  a  complete  history  of  the 
Third  Corps  in  such  manner  and  style  as  his  judg- 

[    15    ] 


ment  may  dictate,  and  we  hereby  extend  to  him 
the  auspices  of  the  Third  Corps  Union  in  this 
contemplated  work,  and  request  that  members  of 
the  Union  and  other  officers  of  the  Third  Corps 
will  assist  him  in  procuring  the  necessary  data 
so  far  as  they  have  it  in  their  power  to  do." 
The  Secretary  was  instructed  to  promulgate  to  the 
officers  of  the  Ninety-third  New  York,  First  Maine 
and  First  Massachusetts  Heavy  Artillery  the  reso 
lution  passed  by  the  Board  relative  to  their  eligi 
bility  for  membership  in  the  Union. 

Meeting  of  December  fifth,  1864,  at  Head 
quarters  Poplar  Springs  Church. 

On  January  fifth,  1865,  presumably  at  the  same 
place.  Among  the  various  applications  made  and 
considered  at  every  meeting,  most  of  which  after 
investigation  were  denied,  there  was  one  at  this 
meeting  unique  in  its  character.  It  was  from 
Chaplain  Moore,  asking  aid  for  the  family  of  Col 
onel  Van  Lear  of  the  Sixth  New  Jersey,  who  was 
killed  at  the  battle  of  Williamsburg.  Needless  to 
say  that  it  was  declined  and  although  this  was  an 
extreme  instance,  there  were  many  made  that  had 
as  little  claim  on  the  funds  of  the  Union.  As  a 
pendant  to  this  there  was  appropriated  at  the 
same  meeting  the  sum  of  two  hundred  dollars  to 
the  widow  of  Colonel  M.  B.  Stafford,  Eighty-sixth 
New  York. 

There  is  no  record  of  a  February  meeting  but 
there  was  one  in  March.  No  business  of  note  was 
transacted. 

The  meeting  of  April  twentieth  was  following 
the  surrender  at  Appomattox.  One  might  be  ex 
pected  to  look  to  this  record  for  some  sign  of  or 

[     16     ] 


allusion  to  the  prospective  disbanding  of  the  army, 
but  there  is  not  a  syllable  to  suggest  it.  The  only 
thing  to  attract  the  attention  is  the  absence  of 
General  Mott  from  the  meeting.  We  all  know 
that  he  was  again  wounded  at  the  fight  at  Farm- 
ville.  General  De  Trobriand  presided  and  Cap 
tain  A.  Judson  Clark  was  present  for  the  first  time 
since  the  campaign  opened  in  May,  1864.  Not 
withstanding  the  absence  of  the  Treasurer  his 
annual  report  was  read. 

At  a  meeting  held  on  the  twenty-seventh  of  May 
General  Mott  was  again  in  the  chair.  This  was 
three  days  after  the  great  review  in  Washington. 
At  that  time  the  Division  was  at  or  near  Baileys 
Cross  Roads,  Va.,  having  passed  through  Rich 
mond  on  the  sixth,  through  Fredericksburg  on  the 
tenth,  and  arriving  at  the  Potomac,  opposite 
Washington,  on  the  seventeenth. 

What  may  rightly  be  called  the  last  War  meet 
ing  of  the  Directors  of  the  Union  was  that  of  June 
third,  1865,  although  there  was  one  held  on  the 
twenty-ninth  at  which  nothing  of  moment  tran 
spired. 

At  the  first  the  canvass  was  made  for  the  elec 
tion  of  officers,  in  which  all  the  old  board  was 
re-elected  with  one  exception.  That  was  to  the 
office  of  Corresponding  Secretary,  which  was  as 
signed  to  Colonel  Charles  P.  Mattocks,  Seventeenth 
Maine.  The  following  emphasizes  the  occasion  :— 
"The  Secretary  is  instructed  to  carry  with  him 
to  New  Jersey  the  books,  papers,  certificates  of 
membership,  etc.,  of  the  Union,  that  the  business 
be  transacted  there,  in  view  of  the  disbandment 
of  the  army." 


No  one  can  read  the  foregoing  reports  without 
being  impressed  with  a  sense  of  the  conscientious 
devotion  that  the  officers  of  the  Union  gave  to 
their  work.  We  really  gain  but  an  imperfect  idea 
of  the  amount  of  time  given  to  it  from  what  has 
here  been  told.  If  the  letters  and  other  papers 
had  been  preserved  we  should  be  amazed  at  their 
bulk  and  they  would  add  an  important  contribu 
tion  to  the  history  of  the  Corps.  That  they  should 
have  found  time,  from  the  pressing  duties  of  the 
hour,  to  give  to  the  details  that  we  have  seen 
attended  to,  even,  we  may  truthfully  say,  for  a 
part  of  the  time  under  fire,  must  ever  be  a  matter 
of  wonderment.  It  can  scarcely  be  possible  that 
any  one  of  them  ever  gave  a  thought  to  the  future 
of  the  society  they  created,  or  the  work  they  were 
doing  in  its  bearing  on  the  future.  If  such  a 
thought  ever  came  it  must  have  been  dismissed 
with  the  conclusion  that  the  end  of  the  war  would 
be  the  end  of  the  "Third  Army  Corps  Union." 
That  it  could  be  perpetuated  and  become  to  us 
what  it  has  been  in  the  last  forty  years  could  never 
have  entered  into  their  imagination.  Therefore 
we  owe  them  a  debt  of  gratitude  beyond  that  due 
them  for  their  patriotic  services,  and  we  must 
ever  recall  their  names  at  our  meetings  with  a 
reverential  thankfulness  that  can  come  only  from 
the  ties  that  bind  those  who  have  been  "Tried  in 
dangers  many". 

One  other  thing  that  we  must  now  regret  has 
not  been  followed  as  persistently  as  they  would 
have  followed  it  had  they  lived,  and  that  is  the 
desire  shown  on  more  than  one  occasion  to  collect 
and  preserve  the  records  and  history  of  the  Third 

[     18     ] 


Corps.  It  is  certainly  a  matter  of  regret  that  the 
Corps,  whose  history  is  such  a  large  part  of  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac  should  have  found  no  his 
torian.  We  cannot  but  be  thankful  that  General 
Walker  in  his  able  history  of  the  Second  Corps  has 
done  for  us  more  than  any  other  who  has  written 
of  those  memorable  days  that  began  in  May  1864 
and  ended  with  the  surrender  at  Appomattox. 

Before  attempting  a  summary  of  the  meetings 
that  have  been  held  since  the  war  it  will  be  more 
in  keeping  with  what  has  gone  before,  and  will 
supplement  and  in  a  way  explain  it,  if  we  let  the 
first  Treasurer  of  the  Union  tell  his  story. 


LETTER  OF  E.  R.  TREMAIN. 


New  York,  July  19,  1863. 
My  dear  Son: 

On  Friday,  Major  Purdy  called  on  me,  with  a 
letter  from  Captain  Fry,  telling  him  to  call  on  me 
and  procure  my  aid  in  sending  off  supplies  for  the 
wounded  of  the  Third  Army  Corps,  in  the  battle  of 
Gettysburg.  He  had  a  rough  list  of  the  articles 
particularly  needed,  such  as  lemons,  oranges,  fruits, 
tamarinds,  jellies,  etc.  He  also  showed  me  a  pen 
cilled  note  from  General  Sickles  to  Jas.  T.  Brady 
saying  that  Major  Purdy  would  explain  a  wish  he 
had  at  heart,  to  aid  his  wounded  heroes  at  Gettys 
burg,  and  asking  him  to  help  him  execute  it.  Brady 
being  out  of  the  city,  the  responsibility  seemed  to  fall 
on  me,  of  acting  alone.  Purdy  also  handed  me  the 
Paymaster's,  McBlair's,  check,  to  General  Sickles' 
order,  for  $100  as  the  General's  contribution. 

I  took  all  the  documents  and  yesterday  at  the 
regular  meeting  of  the  Public  Stock  Board  (not 
the  old  Stock  Exchange  Board,  but  the  new  Public 
Board,  of  which  I  am  a  member)  asked  unanimous 
consent  to  suspend  the  rules  for  a  few  moments  to 
allow  me  to  present  a  statement  in  regard  to  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac,  which  was  granted.  I 
secured  the  almost  breathless  silence  for  a  short 
time,  of  this  usually  very  boisterous  and  excited 

[    20    ] 


body  of  stock  brokers,  while  I  made  the  simple 
statement,  in  a  few  words  of  appeal  to  their  loyalty 
and  humanity,  and  taking  from  my  pocket  a  sub 
scription  list,  and  pointing  to  the  General's  check 
that  I  had  pinned  to  the  list,  asked  what  we  ought 
to  do,  when  a  General  who  had  lost  one  leg  in  our 
defence  sent  from  his  pay  one  hundred  dollars  for 
this  cause  ?  I  promised,  in  the  beginning  not  to 
consume  more  than  five  minutes  of  their  time,  and 
had  their  earnest  and  undivided  attention  for  about 
that  time,  and  asked  "What  will  you  do?"  A 
shout  went  up,  earnest  and  responsive,  "Send  them 
supplies" — "take  the  money"  —"here's  my  pile"- 
""put  me  down  for  $25";  "put  me  down  for  $10", 
etc.  In  less  than  ten  minutes  I  had  collected  $700. 
I  have  seen  Adams  Express  who  will  see  that  a 
special  car  is  sent  right  through.  Tomorrow  I 
will  devote  to  aiding  Purdy  in  procuring  and  dis 
patching  the  supplies,  and  will  act  as  Treasurer  of 
the  fund,  to  see  that  it  is  properly  and  judiciously 
expended. 

I  have  thus  given  the  details  because  Purdy  is  not 
very  clear  in  his  explanation  of  what  the  General 
really  desired,  to  make  the  effort  more  general  and 
public,  or  rather  private  with  a  few  personal 
friends.  I  think  I  have  taken  the  most  efficient 
mode  and  hope  it  will  prove  satisfactory  in  the  end 
and  be  productive  of  benefit  to  the  poor  wounded 
heroes. 

Yours  affectionately, 

(signed)  E.  R.  TREMAIN. 


TOLD  BY  THE  TREASURER. 


The  first  entry  on  the  book  of  the  Treasurer  is 
under  the  date  of  September  twenty-seventh,  1863, 
and  the  amount  sixty  dollars,  for  initiation  fees. 
Other  entries  rapidly  followed  until  the  fifth  of 
May,  1864,  when  the  receipts  totaled,  for  admis 
sions  alone,  thirty-eight  hundred  and  seventy 
dollars.  This  would  indicate  that  upon  the  day 
from  which  we  date  our  annual  meeting,  three 
hundred  and  eighty-seven  members  had  been  en 
rolled  in  the  Union.  In  this  the  first  year  of  our 
history  there  was  one  other  very  significant  entry 
and  that  was  the  sum  of  six  dollars  and  ninety 
cents  for  interest  on  a  U.  S.  four  per  cent.  bond. 
The  question  as  to  how  best  to  keep  the  money 
that  had  accumulated  in  the  hands  of  the  Treas 
urer  seems  to  have  been  answered  by  the  dictates 
of  patriotism  and  the  faith  in  the  cause  for  which 
we  were  contending,  and  to  have  been  shown  by 
tendering  this  money,  received  from  the  Govern 
ment,  to  the  Government,  to  carry  on  the  work 
that  we  were  doing.  This  investment  was  the 
nucleus  of  the  Permanent  Fund  that  we  hold  to 
this  day. 

The  first  benefit  paid  from  this  money  was  to 
Mrs.  Colonel  Casper  Trepp  on  the  death  of  her 
husband,  the  Lieutenant  Colonel  of  Berdan's  First 
Regiment  of  Sharp  Shooters.  He  was  killed  at 


Mine  Run  on  the  thirtieth  of  November,  1863. 
The  next  was  to  Mrs.  McDonough,  widow  of  Cap 
tain  H.  J.  McDonough,  Seventy-second  New  York, 
killed  at  Locust  Grove,  November  twenty-seventh. 
The  third  was  to  G.  G.  White  whose  name  does 
not  appear  on  the  roster  and  may  not  represent 
the  officer  killed,  but  there  is  no  clue  to  his  identity. 

From  May,  1864,  to  May,  1865,  the  receipts  were 
twelve  hundred  and  thirty-eight  dollars  and  sev 
enty-five  cents.  This  came  from  dues,  five  hun 
dred  and  fifty;  new  members,  four  hundred  and 
eighty;  interest,  two  hundred  and  eight  dollars 
and  seventy-five  cents.  This  would  indicate  an 
increase  in  membership  to  four  hundred  and  thirty- 
five.  The  entries  on  the  other  side  of  the  ledger 
during  this  battle  summer,  autumn  and  winter, 
were  a  sad  record  of  the  killed  and  suggestion  of 
want  in  their  families.  The  total  amount  paid  on 
account  of  the  undertakers  and  to  the  widows  was 
fourteen  hundred  and  eighty-nine  dollars.  Seven 
families  were  aided  with  sums  varying  from  fifty 
to  two  hundred  dollars.  The  running  expenses 
were  trifling  and  the  only  item  of  consequence  was 
that  for  certificates.  The  badge  account  is  not 
included  in  this,  being  kept  entirely  in  an  account 
by  itself. 

As  a  matter  of  interest  it  may  be  told  here,  that 
during  the  term  of  General  Mott's  treasurership 
he  issued  two  hundred  and  twelve  badges  involv 
ing  the  handling  of  fifty-two  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  dollars. 

The  balance  at  the  close  of  this  year  was  twenty- 
two  hundred  and  twenty-four  dollars,  including 
the  amount  invested. 

[     23    ] 


By  the  end  of  the  following  year  this  amount 
had  been  increased  by  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
four  dollars,  of  which  eighty-four  was  interest  and 
the  balance  was  from  fourteen  new  memberships, 
bringing  the  total  of  members,  living  and  deceased, 
to  four  hundred  and  fifty-nine.  During  this  year 
one  benefit  was  paid  of  sixty-two  dollars,  and  two 
hundred  and  forty-five  for  the  undertakers'  bills. 
The  last  bill  paid  of  this  nature  was  for  the  em 
balming  of  the  body  of  Colonel  Moore  of  the 
Ninety-ninth  Pennsylvania,  killed  at  Fort  Fisher, 
January  fifteenth,  1865.  At  that  date  he  was  the 
Colonel  of  the  Two  hundred  and  third  Pennsyl 
vania,  of  the  Tenth  Corps. 

On  the  fifth  of  May,  1866,  there  was  a  balance 
of  twenty-one  hundred  and  forty-one  dollars,  to 
which  only  the  interest  was  added  in  the  follow 
ing  year,  so  that  after  the  payment  of  sundry  ex 
penses  there  remained  but  two  thousand  and 
ninety-five  dollars.  Of  course  no  attempt  was 
made  to  collect  dues  and  probably  the  prevailing 
idea  among  the  members  was  that  the  society 
would  cease  to  exist  and  that  its  work  was  ended. 
It  was  no  wonder  that  with  the  return  of  the  men 
to  their  homes  other  subjects  engrossed  their 
minds  and  that  the  sentiment  that  created  the 
Grand  Army  and  the  Loyal  Legion  had  not  sprung 
into  life. 

The  officers  of  the  Union,  however,  were  alive 
to  their  duties  as  in  the  more  strenuous  days,  and 
in  1867  there  was  a  call  sent  out  for  the  annual 
meeting,  which  has  ever  since  been  attended  with 
ever  increasing  enthusiasm,  in  many  cities  and 
towns,  until  the  present  time. 

[     24     ] 


The  monetary  consideration  at  these  first  meet 
ings  was  not  of  prime  importance  evidently,  judg 
ing  by  the  small  amounts  that  came  to  the  hands 
of  the  Treasurer.  A  few  new  members  were  added 
and  fewer  dues  collected,  and  the  receipts  were 
lumped  by  the  Treasurer  to  whom  the  money  was 
turned  over  by  the  Secretary  in  bulk.  Hence, 
how  much  was  collected  for  dues  or  for  dinners 
is  not  apparent  from  any  figures  today.  When  the 
expenses  exceeded  the  receipts  the  "hat  was 
passed,"  for  the  idea  of  holding  to  what  money  had 
accumulated  was  strong  in  the  minds  of  all  as  we 
shall  see  later.  Needless  to  say  that  the  mem 
bers  were  not  slow  in  making  up  any  deficiencies 
and  that  other  appeals  were  most  generously  re 
sponded  to.  The  largest  bills  in  those  first  days 
were  for  advertising,  save  those  of  the  caterer, 
who  was  Delmonico,  or  some  other  equally  expen 
sive  host,  for  the  best  was  none  too  good  for  those 
who  had  been  limited  in  their  bill  of  fare  for  four 
years.  Scattered  as  the  members  were,  it  was 
necessary  to  advertise  from  Maine  to  Michigan 
in  any  paper  that  was  likely  to  attract  the  attention, 
and  it  may  indicate  the  condition  of  some  of  our 
number,  or  what  was  thought  to  be,  that  Jay  Cook 
&  Co.,  were  among  the  recipients  of  the  favor. 

Such  items  as  "  Paid  Delmonico  for  inciden 
tals  four  hundred  and  eighty-four  dollars",  "Draft 
on  account  of  Boston  meeting  six  hundred  and  ten 
dollars,"  (Boston  always  was  an  expensive  place), 
"Astor  House  two  hundred  and  eighty-nine  dol 
lars,"  "Guy's  Hotel  four  hundred  and  four  dollars," 
continue  up  to  1876  when  a  halt  was  called  and  the 
expenses  of  the  meetings  were  intrusted  to  a  com- 

[     25    ] 


mittee  and  thereafter  the  Treasurer's  account 
knew  only  dues  and  interest,  with  an  occasional 
membership,  or  in  later  years  a  life  membership.  ]* 

It  was  not  until  1876  that  the  so-called  Perma 
nent  Fund  was  created  amounting  to  thirteen  hun 
dred  and  twenty-five  dollars,  and  which  when  the 
present  Treasurer  succeeded  General  Mott  had 
grown  to  fifteen  hundred  and  forty-seven  dollars 
in  1885.  At  the  present  day  it  amounts  to  one 
thousand  dollars,  being  depleted  by  the  meeting 
at  Hadley  in  1897.  The  Contingent  Fund  that 
was  received  by  the  present  Treasurer  amounted 
to  eighteen  dollars  and  a  few  cents.  In  that  year 
thirty  dollars  was  the  only  income  outside  the 
interest  of  the  Permanent  Fund. 

Then  a  systematic  attempt  was  made  to  collect 
the  annual  dues  and  the  duty  was  taken  from  the 
Secretary  and  laid  upon  the  new  Treasurer.  This 
was  a  great  relief  to  the  former  and  no  burden  to 
the  latter,  for  one  now  has  very  little  idea  of  the 
amount  of  writing  Colonel  Welling  did.  He  was 
a  born  letter-writer  and  nothing  delighted  him 
more  than  a  letter  from  a  comrade  of  the  Corps 
to  whom  he  could  reply,  and  that  was  always 
readily  and  most  entertainingly. 

The  Treasurer  managed  to  bring  his  yearly 
balance  to  the  hundred  dollar  mark  for  several 
years,  but  it  has  been  dwindling  slowly  until  this 
year  of  1909  when  it  has  quite  disappeared  and 
permission  was  given  to  use  the  reserve,  if  neces 
sary. 

There  has  been  a  large  amount  of  money  raised 
since  the  war  that  does  not  appear  in  the  society's 
accounts.  A  very  expensive  badge  was  presented 

[    26    ] 


to  General  J.  Watts  De  Peyster,  a  watch  and  chain 
to  Colonel  Welling  and  a  bronze  medal  to  Major 
Willard  Bullard.  A  monument  was  erected  in 
Chelsea,  Massachusetts,  to  the  memory  of  Miss 
Helen  Gilson,  an  Army  nurse  in  the  Third  Corps 
Hospital,  and  one  to  Colonel  Welling  in  Penning- 
ton,  N.  J.  A  life  size  portrait  of  General  Hooker 
was  presented  to  the  town  of  Hadley  and  a  bronze 
tablet  placed  on  the  house  in  the  town  in  which 
he  was  born.  It  was  the  impulse  of  the  Hadley 
meeting  that  made  the  erection  of  the  statue  of 
General  Hooker  in  Boston  possible,  and  although 
it  was  erected  by  an  appropriation  of  the  Com 
monwealth,  considerable  sums  were  contributed 
by  the  members  of  the  Union  in  pushing  the 
movement  to  a  successful  end. 

It  is  not  the  figures  that  interest  us  in  these 
matters  and  so  they  are  best  ignored.  The  satis 
faction  is  found  in  the  fact  that  when  an  object 
appealed  to  a  comrade's  sense  of  righteousness 
there  was  the  ready  response  that  will  be  made 
again  if  occasion  arrives. 

And  so,  leaving  the  Treasurer's  dry  details,  let 
us  turn  to  the  meetings  that  have  been  held  since 
the  war,  hastily  passing  in  the  review  the  events 
that  are  most  worthy  of  remembrance. 


THE  SEQUEL. 


Pursuant  to  a  call  published  in  the  papers  of 
New  York,  Boston  and  Trenton,  the  Annual  Meet 
ing  was  held  at  the  Continental  Hotel,  Philadel 
phia,  on  the  fifth  of  May,  1866.  How  many  were 
present  at  that  time  is  not  known,  but  the  record 
says  "Not  enough  of  the  members  of  the  Board 
being  present  to  constitute  a  quorum  it  was  resolv 
ed  to  go  immediately  into  a  meeting  for  the  elec 
tion  of  officers  to  serve  the  ensuing  year.  "  Gen 
eral  Mott  was  elected  President  and  General  Mc 
Allister,  Vice  President  and  five  officers  constituted 
the  Board. 

The  time  seems  to  have  been  devoted  to  amend 
ing  the  constitution  and  by-laws,  with  the  idea 
principally  to  have  them  conform  to  the  new  cir 
cumstances.  The  radical  change  was  the  dropping 
from  the  "Declaration  and  Preamble  "  the  state 
ment  that  the  society  was  a  benevolent  one  and  in 
place  of  that  saying  it  was  to  aid  brother  officers, 
etc.  The  new  constitution  was  printed  with  the 
reports  of  the  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  and  an 
"Introductory"  in  a  little  pamphlet,  measuring 
some  four  inches  by  three  and  consisting  of  twenty- 
four  pages.  This  is  probably  one  of  the  little 
"War-Books"  that  in  the  years  to  come  will  bring 
a  fabulous  price  and  as  it  must  be  unknown  to 
many  the  "Introductory"  is  worth  quoting,  at 
least  in  part. 

[     28     ] 


"  Rejoicing  in  the  glorious  memories  of  the  past, 
with  a  hearty  greeting  for  the  present,  and  high 
hopes  for  the  future,  the  Third  Corps  Union  issues 
this  little  pamphlet  to  its  members,  now  scattered 
all  over  this  broad  land,  confidently  trusting  that 
it  may  revive  the  martial  spirit  of  those  days  when 
they  all  wore  the  'blue'  and  the  'diamond',  and 
marched  to  victory  with  the  bannered  hosts  of  the 
noble  old  Corps. 

"Perchance  it  may  come  to  the  peaceful  homes 
and  places  of  business — aye,  it  may  be,  to  the 
sick  couch  of  very  many  who  will,  as  they  read  it, 
gaze  with  greater  interest  and  with  redoubled  affec 
tion  and  pride  on  our  golden  decoration,  and  on 
the  mute  but  eloquent  engraving  which  adorns 
their  dwelling.  Memory  will  call  up  from  her 
treasured  storehouse  the  scenes  and  associations 
of  the  hurried,  tiresome  march,  the  hasty  bivouac, 
the  battle,  the  victory,  the  defeat,  the  wounds, 
the  dead  and  dying  comrades;  while  sweetly  blend 
ing  with  them  all  comes  siren  winged  peace,  with 
magic  power,  binding  up  the  wounds  of  war,  heal 
ing  the  solitary,  mourning,  riven  heart,  and  cloth 
ing  with  monumental  dignity  each  blade  of  grass 
as  it  rears  anew  its  emerald  splendor  over  the 
resting  places  of  their  patriot  dead. 

"  For  the  widow  and  orphan  it  commemorates  a 
husband  and  a  father  who  fell  under  the  Red,  the 
White,  or  the  Blue,  a  Diamond  lost  in  the  setting 
of  earth,  to  be  reproduced  in  the  soldier's  glorious 
signet  of  eternity.  And  while  with  one  hand  it 
offers  the  afflicted  ones  its  sincerest  sympathies 
and  its  most  cordial  remembrances,  with  the  other 
it  proffers  the  hearty  benevolence  of  its  treasury. 

[     29     ] 


To  all  it  comes  as  a  messenger  of  the  glorious  old 
days  of  the  Third  Corps,  recalling  hallowed  re 
membrances,  pleasant  companionships,  saluting 
the  living,  remembering  the  dead  and  bidding  us 
leave  for  a  little  time  the  busy,  bustling  avocations 
of  life,  that  we  may  live  over  again  our  army  days 
and  consecrate  ourselves  anew  to  this  Association 
to  which  we  are  bound  by  no  common  ties,  and 
which  this  day  invites  us  to  receive  its  affectionate 
God  speed." 

The  Secretary  closes  this  introduction  with  a 
tribute  to  Surgeon  S.  C.  Hunkins,  Third  Maine, 
whose  death  occurred  as  the  book  went  to  press. 

In  his  annual  report  Colonel  Welling,  after 
touching  upon  the  topics  of  routine,  "Since  our 
last  meeting  I  have  been  constantly  in  receipt  of 
letters  from  our  comrades  throughout  the  country, 
asking  for  information,  which  to  my  mind  evinces 
that  the  spirit  of  the  old  Third  Corps,  and  the 
love  for  this  association,  the  only  link  binding  us 
to  our  martial  days,  have  by  no  means  grown  cold, 
or  been  permitted  to  die  out.  And  while  now 
there  seems  to  be  an  apparent  apathy  and  want  of 
interest  on  the  part  of  members,  I  am  confident 
that  by  using  the  means  I  have  mentioned,  the 
'esprit  de  corps'  of  ancient  days  would  leap 
forth  to  new  life  and  to  a  more  enthusiastic  de 
monstration  than  has  ever  been  witnessed,  even 
in  the  midst  of  warlike  scenes. 

"The  only  communication  to  which  it  is  my 
pleasurable  duty  to  call  your  attention  is  from 
the  First  Massachusetts  Infantry  Association,  of 
Boston,  bearing  the  signatures  of  General  Robert 
Cowden  and  Captain  Isaac  P.  Gragg,  the  President 

[     30     ] 


and  Secretary.  In  it  are  embodied  in  a  neat  and 
novel  form  their  kindliest  salutations  to  the  Union, 
and  their  assurances  of  never  to  be  forgotten 
comradeship." 

Referring  to  the  death  of  members  he  thus  eulo 
gizes  Surgeon  Calhoun,  his  predecessor.  "And 
I  should  be  false  to  my  own  heart  promptings,  as 
well  as  false  to  the  sincere  sentiments  of  our  Union, 
did  I  fail  to  commemorate  in  this  report  the  death 
of  our  Second  Secretary,  and  our  honored,  gifted 
friend  and  brother,  Assistant  Surgeon  J.  Theodore 
Calhoun,  U.  S.  Army.  True  to  the  spirit  which 
gave  such  vitality  to  his  career,  he  died  a  victim  to 
a  disease  whose  mission  it  was  his  to  conquer. 
Possessing  an  indomitable  will,  a  resolute  spirit 
and  brilliant  genius,  he  rose  to  a  position  in  his 
profession  which  adds  lustre  to  his  name  and  pride 
to  us  today,  as  we  pay  our  tribute  to  his  memory. 
I  feel  it  to  be  not  only  a  pleasure  but  a  duty  for  me 
to  recommend  to  you,  gentlemen,  that  resolutions 
be  passed  and  sent  to  his  bereaved  wife  and  family 
expressive  of  our  appreciation  of  his  life  and  ser 
vices  to  us  as  a  Society  and  deeply  sympathetic 
with  them  in  the  hour  of  their  affliction. 

"There  may  be  others  who  have  passed  from 
earth  since  our  last  assembly,  and  whose  names 
are  registered  on  the  rolls  of  eternity;  if  they  are 
omitted  here,  as  we  pay  our  tributes  of  respect  to 
departed  comrades,  the  omission  must  be  attri 
buted  to  want  of  knowledge.  For  such  the  Union 
wears  the  badge  of  mourning  on  its  ensign,  and  to 
their  families  extends  its  warmest  sympathies  and 
most  heartfelt  benedictions. 

"As   I   respectfully   submit   my   report,   may   I 

[     31     ] 


indulge  the  hope  that,  as  over  the  graves  of  our 
dead  comrades  the  green  grass  of  an  awakening 
spring  has  already  begun  to  wave,  so  may  our 
memory  of  them  and  those  they  left  behind,  be  so 
green,  so  fresh,  so  pure,  that  we  shall  today  again 
renew  our  allegiance  to  this  society  and  again  de 
clare  that  for  the  sake  of  our  comrades  in  the  other 
world  and  their  stricken,  sorrowing  ones  in  this, 
we  will  be  true  to  our  name,  to  our  past,  and  to  our 
future." 

This  extract  from  the  first  report  of  the  Secre 
tary  after  the  war  days  were  ended  is  a  fair  sample 
of  every  one  that  was  given  the  men  until  the  day 
when  his  pen  could  no  longer  record  his  thoughts. 
Is  it  any  wonder  that,  listening  to  such  words, 
under  the  circumstances  in  which  they  were  de 
livered,  or  reading  them  when  printed  by  men  far 
off  in  the  country  home,  a  sentiment  was  created 
for  the  "Union"  that  has  held  us  together  as  the 
men  of  no  other  corps  have  been  held.  There  have 
been  other  reasons  for  this,  in  which  we  have  been 
peculiarly  fortunate,  and  one  is,  in  having  so  con 
tinuously  the  presence  and  inspiration  of  our 
loved  Commander,  whose  interest  in  each  and 
every  one  of  his  "boys"  has  been  as  genuine  as 
the  love  of  a  father  for  his  children,  and  who  has 
received  it  back  into  his  heart  in  full  measure. 
This  is  also  true  in  scarcely  less  measure  in  the 
case  of  other  men  to  whom  we  looked  up  and  re 
spected.  Mott,  McAllister,  Graham  and  many 
others  were  constant  in  their  attendance  at  the 
meetings  and  never  ceased  to  evince  the  liveliest 
interest  in  the  Union.  As  these  passed,  other 
men  came  to  the  front,  less  well  known  at  the  first 

r  32  i 


but  worthy  successors  of  those  named,  who  kept 
alive  the  spirit  and,  it  may  also  be  said,  aroused  it 
to  a  greater  enthusiasm,  at  times,  than  it  has  known 
since  the  war. 

The  meeting  in  1867  was  held  in  Trenton. 
General  Mott  was  re-elected  President.  No  mat 
ters  other  than  routine  came  before  it  for  con 
sideration.  There  was,  doubtless,  at  these  early 
meetings  a  dinner,  or  "banquet",  but  no  reference 
is  made  to  it,  although  an  entry  in  the  report  of 
the  Treasurer  might  lead  to  the  belief  that  it  was 
paid  from  his  funds. 

The  meeting  of  1868  was  also  in  Trenton.  The 
report  names  those  present,  the  number  being  but 
twenty-two.  General  Sickles  was  elected  Presi 
dent.  The  death  of  Mrs.  Helen  Gilson  Osgood, 
who  was  for  so  long  a  time  identified  with  the 
Corps  as  a  nurse,  was  announced  and  a  committee 
reported  resolutions  "in  honor  of  the  departure 
from  earth  of  this  estimable  woman".  Later  we 
shall  read  of  a  monument  to  her  memory.  Un 
fortunately,  the  annual  reports  of  the  Treasurer, 
other  than  that  recorded  in  his  book,  have  not 
been  preserved  for  this  and  some  years  to  come. 

In  December,  1868,  there  was  a  special  meeting 
of  the  Directors  at  Delmonico's  in  New  York,  at 
which  arrangements  were  made,  by  appointing 
a  committee,  for  the  meeting  on  the  coming 
fifth  of  May.  "The  duty  of  said  committee 
shall  be  to  provide  an  entertainment,  to  issue 
tickets  at  such  a  rate  as  shall  defray  the  conse 
quent  expenses  and  to  attend  to  such  other  matters 
as  may  come  under  their  jurisdiction  as  a  committee 
of  arrangements."  The  well  known  names  of 

[     33     ] 


Cooney,  Bullard,  Fassett  and  McMichael  appear 
as  members  selected  for  the  work. 

On  motion  of  Colonel  McMichael  it  was  voted : 

"WHEREAS,  There  is  an  earnest  desire  among  the 
surviving  officers  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  for 
the  formation  of  a  society  and  a  general  reunion 
of  all  who  served  in  that  organization, 

"RESOLVED,  That  it  is  recommended  by  the 
Third  Corps  Union,  the  oldest  association  of  that 
army,  that  measures  be  at  once  taken  to  secure 
the  speedy  accomplishment  of  the  universally 
expressed  wish." 

The  committee  appointed  to  carry  out  this 
was  General  Hooker,  Colonels  McMichael  and 
Pulford,  with  General  Sickles  as  the  chairman. 

A  special  meeting  of  the  members  was  called 
on  the  twenty-second  of  December,  also  at  Del- 
monico's,  when  thirty-three  responded  to  roll  call. 
General  Pleasanton  was  present  by  invitation  and 
was  elected  an  honorary  member  of  the  Union. 
This  was  done  in  the  enthusiasm  of  the  moment 
and  Generals  Hooker  and  Heintzleman  were  im 
mediately  proposed  and  elected  likewise.  Later 
it  was  suggested  by  some  that  the  constitution 
made  no  provision  for  honorary  members  and  it 
took  much  talk  to  set  the  matter  right.  The 
arrangements  for  the  annual  meeting  were  dis 
cussed,  a  vote  passed  inviting  all  officers  of  the 
Corps,  not  members  of  the  Union,  to  be  present, 
subscriptions  were  received  for  a  monument  to 
Mrs.  Helen  Gilson  Osgood  and  resolutions  on  the 
death  of  deceased  comrades. 

[     34     ] 


At  the  annual  meeting  on  the  fifth  of  May,  1869, 
held  at  Delmonico's,  an  attempt  was  made  to 
amend  the  constitution  and  permit  the  election 
of  honorary  members,  but  it  failed  of  success. 
Power  was  given  the  Directors  to  invite  "distin 
guished  officers"  to  the  banquet.  General  Sickles 
was  again  elected  to  the  presidency. 

The  meeting  in  1870  was  held  in  Boston.  Elab 
orate  preparations  had  been  made,  although  much 
of  the  zest  of  the  occasion  was  discounted  by  the 
absence  of  General  Sickles,  who  had  been  ap 
pointed  Minister  to  Spain  since  the  last  meeting. 
To  add  to  it,  neither  General  Mott  nor  any  of  the 
distinguished  officers  of  the  Corps  were  able  to 
be  present.  Major  A.  Judson  Clark  presided  at 
the  meeting.  General  Sickles  was  again  the 
choice  for  President  but  an  eastern  man  came  in 
for  second  place,  Colonel  Charles  P.  Mattocks, 
of  Portland,  Me.,  and  two  eastern  men  were  put 
upon  the  Board  of  Directors. 

Captain  G.  W.  Cooney  offered  the  following: 

"WHEREAS,  General  J.  Watts  De  Peyster  has, 
with  his  pen  and  influence  on  all  occasions  defended 
and  sustained  the  reputation  of  the  Third  Corps,  by 
giving  to  the  public  the  true  version  of  its  acts  in 
the  several  engagements  in  which  it  participated 
during  the  late  war,  particularly  the  Battle  of 
Gettysburg,  therefore, 

"RESOLVED,  That  a  committee  be  authorized 
to  prepare  and  present  to  him  a  suitable  medal,  as 
an  appreciation  of  his  efforts  and  as  a  recognition 
of  his  ability,  to  hand  down  to  posterity  a  true  and 
correct  statement  of  the  part  acted  by  the  Third 

[     35     ] 


Corps  during  the  war.  The  same  to  be  by  volun 
tary  subscriptions  and  of  no  expense  to  the  Union." 

Colonel  Batchelder  invited  the  members  to  visit 
the  picture  of  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg,  then  on 
exhibition,  and  offered  to  donate  the  receipts  of 
one  day  to  the  monument  to  be  erected  to  Mrs. 
Helen  Gilson  Osgood.  General  Mattocks  presided 
at  the  dinner  and  gave  an  oration  carefully  prepared, 
by  request,  on  the  "Lessons  of  the  War",  and  a 
poem  was  read  by  Lieutenant  George  A.  Marden, 
First  Sharp  Shooters.  The  invited  guests  were 
General  Cowden,  of  Boston,  and  Mayor  Shurtleff. 
Hon.  Frank  B.  Fay  was  also  present,  known  to 
many  soldiers  for  his  activity  in  the  hospitals  and 
on  the  field  as  a  leading  member  of  the  Christian 
commission. 

The  meeting  in  1871  was  held  at  the  Astor 
House,  New  York.  Colonel  McMichael  pre 
sided.  The  minutes  of  the  meeting  show  that  the 
monetary  condition  was  beginning  to  alarm  some  of 
the  members  and  that  a  fear  of  encroaching  upon 
the  invested  money  had  been  aroused,  probably 
by  the  expense  of  the  Boston  meeting.  After 
quite  sharp  discussion  the  following  article  was 
adopted  as  an  amendment  to  the  constitution. 
"Honorary  members  of  the  Third  Corps  Union 
may  be  elected  in  either  of  the  following  ways,  viz.: 
First,  by  a  unanimous  vote  at  any  annual  meeting. 
Second,  by  a  nomination  at  any  stated  meeting 
and  an  election  by  a  vote  of  three-fourths  of  all 
members  present  at  the  next  annual  meeting." 
The  following  were  then  declared  honorary  mem 
bers:  General  Alfred  Pleasanton;  General  J.  Watts 
De  Peyster;  and  Thomas  M.  Cook,  representative 

[    36    ] 


at  Third  Corps  headquarters  for  a  long  time  of  the 
New  York  Herald.  This  entry  suggests  the  re 
mark  that  there  is  no  evidence  that  Generals 
Hooker  and  Heintzleman  were  ever  formally 
elected  members  of  either  class.  General  Charles 
K.  Graham  was  elected  President  and  Colonel 
Clayton  McMichael  of  Philadelphia,  Vice  Presi 
dent.  Either  at  this  or  the  former  meeting  life 
memberships  were  provided  for  at  the  rate  of 
twenty-five  dollars,  relieving  the  members  of  all 
dues. 

During  this  year,  the  date  is  not  on  record,  the 
badge  was  presented  to  General  De  Peyster.  It 
was  thus  described:  "The  badge  is  six  inches  long. 
At  the  top,  forming  the  pin  clasp,  is  a  shoulder 
strap  embossed  with  two  silver  stars,  indicative 
of  the  rank  of  major  general.  The  badge  depends 
from  this,  and  is  composed  of  gold,  tastefully 
relieved  with  precious  stones.  The  upper  part 
consists  of  seven  gold  bars  on  which  are  engraved 
the  services  rendered  by  the  recipient.  Below 
these  bars  is  an  exquisitely  chased  eagle  with  wings 
full  spread,  holding  in  his  talons  a  diamond  or 
lozenge,  the  distinguishing  badge  of  the  Third 
Corps  while  in  the  field.  On  this  is  an  enameled 
wreath  of  laurel,  two  crossed  swords  and  a  small 
lozenge  in  the  center  surrounded  by  silver  rays. 
This  smaller  lozenge  holds  a  diamond  worth  one 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars.  Above  it,  and  beneath 
the  swords,  is  engraved  the  name  of  Heintzleman, 
the  first  commander  of  the  Corps.  From  the 
lower  angle  of  the  lozenge  and  the  two  points  of 
the  crossed  swords,  hang  three  pendants,  lozenge 
shaped,  which  represent  the  three  divisions  com- 

[     37     ] 


posing  the  old  corps,  when  it  was  complete.  The 
first  is  set  with  a  ruby  of  the  finest  water,  and  has 
engraved  on  the  reverse  the  name  of  the  deeply 
mourned  Kearny,  who  originated  the  idea  of  such 
a  decoration  for  his  division.  The  second  is  repre 
sented  by  a  clear  diamond  bearing  the  name  of 
Hooker.  The  third  is  a  choice  sapphire  and  bears 
the  name  of  Whipple,  who  was  mortally  wounded 
at  Chancellorsville. 

"These  four  names,  Heintzleman,  Kearny, 
Hooker  and  Whipple,  form  an  epitome  of  the  ser 
vices  rendered  the  country  by  the  officers  and  men 
of  the  gallant  old  Third  Corps." 

A  special  meeting  of  the  directors  was  held  at 
the  call  of  the  President,  on  the  tenth  of  January, 
1872.  The  reason  is  told  by  the  preamble  and 
resolutions  adopted. 

"WHEREAS,  General  D.  E.  Sickles,  our  corps 
commander,  the  U.  S.  Minister  at  Spain,  is  on  a 
visit  to  the  United  States,  and 

"WHEREAS,  His  brilliant  services,  as  a  be 
loved  commander  of  our  corps,  as  well  as  his  dis 
tinguished  position  among  the  statesmen  of  our 
country,  reflect  the  highest  honor  upon  us  as  a 
society  and  upon  the  country  at  large,  therefore, 

"RESOLVED,  That  we  tender  to  General  Sickles 
our  congratulations  upon  his  safe  return  to  the 
land  of  his  birth  under  such  favorable  auspices, 
and  it  gives  us  great  satisfaction  that  he  has  availed 
himself  of  the  indulgence  of  the  Department  to 
visit  his  home,  as  well  as  to  give  us  an  opportunity 
to  renew  to  him  our  sentiments  of  high  regard  and 
esteem.  That  we  tender  to  him  a  dinner,  at  such 

[    38    ] 


time  and  place  as  he  may  designate,  previous  to 
his  departure  for  Spain;  and  in  the  event  of  his 
acceptance,  the  President  be  empowered  to  appoint 
a  committee  to  make  all  arrangements." 

A  committee  was  appointed  with  Colonel 
McMichael  as  chairman.  It  was  made  up  of 
Generals  Graham  and  Sharpe.  Major  Bullard, 
Captain  Fassitt,  General  Tremain  and  Captain 
Demarest. 

There  are  no  records  from  which  to  ascertain 
the  date  when  the  dinner  was  given. 

The  annual  meeting  of  1872  was  held  on  the 
fourth  of  May.  General  Graham,  the  president, 
was  absent  because  of  illness.  A  large  part  of  the 
time  of  the  meeting  was  taken  up  with  discussing 
amendments  to  the  constitution,  that  have  no 
interest  today.  It  appears  that  General  Heintzle- 
man  was  present.  For  the  first  time  there  was  a 
difference  among  the  members  as  to  the  choice  of 
officers.  Two  candidates  were  named  for  presi 
dent.  One,  General  Graham,  the  second,  Colonel 
McMichael.  The  result  was  the  election  of  the 
first  as  president  and  the  second  as  vice  president. 
The  city  of  Philadelphia,  where  the  meeting  was 
held,  extended  every  courtesy  to  the  Union  .The 
meeting  was  held  in  the  Council  Chamber  of  the 
City  Hall;  the  Union  League  Club  threw  open  its 
doors  and  the  citizens  by  many  courtesies  made  us 
welcome.  The  dinner  in  the  evening  was  the 
largest  and  most  distinguished  of  any  the  Corps 
had  ever  enjoyed.  There  were  present  Generals 
Meade,  Patterson,  Heintzleman,  Mott,  Tremain 
and  Sewall;  Hon.  Morton  McMichael  and 
Colonel  James  Forney  of  the  Marine  Corps,  and  a 

[    39    ] 


very  large  representation  of  the  members  of  the 
Union.  Taken  altogether  it  was  voted  the  most 
enthusiastic  and  enjoyable  of  any  meeting  that 
had  been  held.  On  the  following  day  those  of 
the  men  who  remained  over  were  taken  among 
other  places  to  Woodlands  Cemetery,  where 
General  Birney  is  buried. 

One  outcome  of  this  meeting  was  the  attempt 
to  have  a  complete  roster  of  the  members  printed. 
It  was  put  forth  in  the  January  following  and  from 
the  notice  on  the  first  page  of  the  pamphlet  of 
fifteen  pages,  it  was  evidently  but  an  attempt  to 
obtain  information  that  would  lead  to  a  more  per 
fect  record.  The  names  were  not  given  in  alpha 
betical  order  and  but  a  few  of  them  had  any  but 
the  regiment  to  which  the  comrade  belonged.  The 
Secretary  said:  "There  are  a  large  number  upon 
the  roll  whose  address  is  unknown  to  the  Secretary, 
and  members  will  please  note  the  address  of  such 
as  may  come  within  their  knowledge.  If  any 
have  died  please  mark  date  of  death/'  A  list  of 
the  dead  of  the  Union  was  appended,  to  the  number 
of  fifty-five. 

The  meeting  of  1873  was  held  in  Irving  Hall, 
New  York.  Colonel  Clayton  McMichael  was 
elected  President  and  General  George  H.  Sharpe, 
Vice-President.  Captain  Fassitt  presented  to  the 
Secretary,  Colonel  Welling,  a  watch  and  chain, 
Colonel  Morgan  presented  to  Major  Willard 
Bullard  a  bronze  medal.  No  mention  is  made  as 
to  the  donors  of  these  gifts,  or  who  instigated  the 
presentations.  Resolutions  upon  the  death  of 
several  members  occupied  the  time  of  the  meeting. 
The  "banquet"  was  spread  at  Guy's,  Corner  of 

[    40    ] 


Broadway  and  Fourteenth  Street.  The  only 
record  at  hand  is  the  bill  of  fare,  from  which  it  is 
gleaned  that  there  were  present  as  guests,  General 
Stuart  Woodford  (much  better  known  today  than 
then),  General  Owens,  General  McMahon,  General 
Davies  and  Hon.  Richard  O.  Gorman. 

In  1874  the  meeting  was  in  Newark.  The  busi 
ness  was  transacted  in  the  City  Council  Chamber 
by  invitation  of  the  Mayor.  On  motion  of  General 
Biles  the  Secretary  was  "Requested  to  forward  a 
communication  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States  asking  him  to  appoint  at  the  solicitation  of 
the  Third  Corps  Union,  William  P.  Van  Leer,  son 
of  Colonel  John  P.  Van  Leer,  killed  at  the  Battle 
of  Williamsburgh,  to  a  Cadetship  at  West  Point." 

The  question  of  a  history  of  the  Third  Corps 
coming  before  the  meeting  it  was,  after  many  mo 
tions  and  much  discussion,  moved  and  voted, 
"That  a  committee  of  five  be  appointed  to  confer 
with  General  De  Peyster  as  to  the  publication  of 
his  history  of  the  Third  Corps." 

On  motion  of  Colonel  Bullard  the  Secretary  was 
instructed  "to  telegraph  to  Congress  that  the  Third 
Army  Corps  Union  would  like  to  see  the  bill  pass 
for  the  Centennial  appropriation  in  order  that  the 
one  hundredth  anniversary  of  American  liberty 
may  be  a  greater  success."  Colonel  McMichael 
was  re-elected  president. 

A  complete  report  of  this  meeting,  as  given  by 
the  newspapers,  would  fill  many  pages.  The 
mayor  gave  a  reception  and  made  a  speech  of  wel 
come.  General  Mott,  in  his  official  capacity  of 
Commander  of  the  State  Militia,  with  his  Brigade 
Commanders,  and  their  staffs  were  present  to  ex- 

[  «  i 


tend  a  welcome  and  in  fact  the  freedom  of  the  city 
was  presented,  not  only  to  the  society  but  to  every 
individual.  After  the  adjournment  of  the  business 
meeting  the  Fifth  Veteran  Regiment,  commanded 
by  Colonel  Barnard,  with  the  band  from  Gov 
ernors  Island,  paraded  in  front  of  the  City  Hall, 
and  as  the  members  of  the  Union  present  appeared 
on  the  steps  they  presented  arms.  Taking  posi 
tion  immediately  behind  the  color  company  the 
march  to  Military  Park  was  made,  where  a  salute 
was  fired  by  Battery  A,  commanded  by  Captain 
Kahlert.  The  visitors  then  took  position  and  the 
First  Brigade,  after  inspection  by  General  Mott, 
passed  in  review. 

The  exercises  of  the  evening  were  held  at  the 
Maison  Grise,  with  a  large  number  of  distinguished 
guests,  and  the  post  prandial  section  was  ex 
tended  into  the  wee  small  hours.  The  most  inter 
esting  of  the  speakers  was  Cortland  Parker,  a 
relative  of  General  Kearny,  who  responded  to  the 
toast  in  his  memory  as  follows:  After  giving  a 
portrayal  of  the  character  of  the  man,  the  love  his 
officers  and  men  bore  him,  the  care,  the  anxiety, 
the  tenderness  he  evinced  towards  his  men,  he 
said:  "Shall  we  forget  all  about  this  brave  soldier, 
shall  we  forget  the  feeling  of  his  brigade  when  the 
order  for  promotion  came  and  he  was  offered  a 
division  ?  He  replied,  'Yes,  I  accept,  if  my  brigade 
is  to  be  a  part  of  my  division. '  It  was  but  a  few 
weeks  after  he  took  command  of  that  division  that 
he  led  to  the  victory  of  Williamsburgh,  of  which 
today  is  the  anniversary.  Hardly  a  movement 
took  place  on  the  Peninsula  but  he  foresaw  it,  and 
wrote  his  friends  about  it.  He  had  a  remarkable 

[    42    ] 


foresight.  Who  saved  our  troops  when  they  were 
retreating  on  Harrison  Landing  ?  Was  it  not 
Phil  Kearny  ?  He  went  through  the  war  merely 
the  gallant  soldier,  while  feeling  that  he  could  lead 
a  division  as  easily  as  a  brigade,  a  corps  as  easily 
as  a  division.  Had  he  known  how  much  he  was 
valued,  in  all  probability  he  would  not  have  died 
so  soon.  In  one  letter  the  Secretary  of  War  states 
that  he  was  waiting  for  the  opportunity  to  make 
use  of  such  signal  ability.  The  command  of  the 
army  of  the  Potomac  was  his  destiny  had  not  death 
intervened.  It  was  a  fearful  thing  for  us  all  that 
we  should  lose  him  at  that  time.  I  shall  never 
forget  that  day.  Handsome,  nobly  surrendered 
by  General  Lee,  his  body  conveyed  to  Washington 
and  brought  here.  His  person  was  hardly  known 
here,  having  lived  so  much  abroad.  But  the  Com 
mon  Council  and  the  citizens  of  Newark  insisted 
and  the  cortege  came  over  from  the  Passaic  River, 
revered  by  silent  multitudes,  carried  through  our 
streets  to  the  extreme  end  of  our  city  and  con 
veyed  to  its  last  resting  place  amid  the  most  solemn 


ceremonies/1 


The  meeting  of  1875  was  held  in  New  York. 
At  this  meeting  there  was  a  thorough  revision  of 
the  constitution,  following  the  report  of  a  com 
mittee  appointed  the  year  before.  The  name  of 
the  society  was  changed  from  "Third  Corps 
Union"  to  "Third  Army  Corps  Union".  All  sug 
gestion  of  aid  to  members  is  discarded  and  the 
object  of  the  society  is  declared  to  be  "to  perpet 
uate  the  history  of  the  Corps".  A  separation  of 
the  money  in  the  Treasurer's  hands  was  made,  for 
a  Permanent  and  a  Contingent  Fund.  Trustees 

[    43    ] 


were  to  be  elected  to  have  the  control  of  the  Perma 
nent  Fund,  which  was  to  be  credited  with  all  the 
money  in  the  treasury  after  the  debts  of  the  fiscal 
year  were  paid.  Other  changes  were  not  of  great 
consequence  to  us  of  today. 

The  President  was  requested  to  "present  to 
his  Excellency,  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
the  name  of  Frederick  Clay  Bowers,  son  of  Captain 
Charles  F.  Bowers,  late  eighth  New  Jersey,  for 
appointment  as  cadet  at  large  to  the  U.  S.  Naval 
Academy,  as  a  recognition  of  the  services  of  our 
comrade  who  fought  gallantly  in  the  late  war,  for 
the  preservation  of  the  Union." 

The  Secretary  was  instructed  "To  thank  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  General  U.  S. 
Grant,  for  prompt  and  very  satisfactory  attention 
to  the  recommendation  of  the  Union,  for  the  ap 
pointment  of  William  P.  Van  Leer  to  the  Military 
Academy  at  West  Point." 

The  election  resulted  in  the  choice  of  General 
George  H.  Sharpe  for  President  and  General 
William  Sewall  for  Vice  President. 

In  adjourning,  General  Tremain  moved  that 
"The  next  annual  reunion  be  on  May  fifth,  as  pre 
scribed  by  the  constitution,  and  be  adjourned  with 
out  the  transaction  of  business,  to  a  later  day  in 
that  year,  to  be  named  by  the  Board."  The  ob 
ject  of  this  motion,  not  referred  to  in  the  records, 
was  to  afford  the  society  the  opportunity  of  being 
in  Philadelphia  at  the  Centennial  Reunion. 

The  meeting  of  1876  was  held  as  prescribed  and 
adjourned  after  electing  General  Joseph  B.  Kiddoo, 
U.  S.  A.,  late  One  hundred  and  thirty-seventh 

[    44    ] 


Pennsylvania,  a  member  of  the  Union.  There  is 
no  record  of  a  Philadelphia  meeting  other  than 
the  call  of  the  Secretary,  for  the  fifth  of  June,  at 
the  Union  League  House.  The  dinner  to  be 
served  in  the  banquet  room  of  the  League. 

The  distinguished  guests  present  at  this  meeting 
were:  Governor  Hartranft,  Generals  Hooker, 
Hardin,  Dix,  Hancock,  Ingalls,  McCook,  Hum 
phrey  and  Potter. 

The  meeting  of  1877  was  held  in  New  York  at 
Delmonico's.  General  Sewall  was  elected  Presi 
dent  and  General  Tremain,  Vice  President.  Gen 
eral  Sickles  was  present  and  answered  to  the  toast 
of  the  President  at  the  dinner  in  the  evening. 
Others  at  the  board  were  Generals  Butterfield, 
Pleasanton,  McCook,  Kiddoo,  Hobart  Ward  and 
Crawford.  It  is  perhaps  superfluous  to  say  that 
the  comrades  who  were  present  at  this  welcome 
to  General  Sickles  on  his  return  from  Spain,  were 
those  who  never  fail  to  respond  to  the  annual  call, 
as  well  as  many  who  were  seldom  seen  at  the  meet 
ings.  General  Sickles  had,  as  his  guest,  Colonel 
Lopez  de  Queralta,  "a  leader  of  the  insurgent 
forces  in  his  native  land,"  as  the  papers  reported. 

The  meeting  of  1878  was  at  Newburg,  on  the 
Hudson,  on  the  seventh  of  May,  the  fifth  having 
fallen  on  Sunday.  The  officers  who  served  dur 
ing  the  last  year  were  elected  by  acclamation.  As 
at  Newark  so  at  Newburg,  city  officials  and  citizens 
alike  vied  with  one  another  to  do  honor  to  their 
visitors.  On  arrival  we  were  escorted  to  the 
Mayor's  office,  where  a  reception  was  held,  the 
mayor  at  that  time  being  Colonel  Weygant  of  the 

[    45    ] 


One  hundred  twenty-fourth  New  York,  which  was 
largely  recruited  from  the  locality  and  known  to 
us  as  the  "Orange-Blossoms".  Of  that  com 
mittee  of  reception  were  Major  Ramsdell  and  Dr. 
Montfort,  well  known  members  of  the  Regiment 
and  the  Union.  After  the  reception  we  were  given 
a  lunch  at  the  hotel,  with  a  speech  of  welcome  from 
Rev.  W.  K.  Hall,  and  an  invitation  to  the  Head 
quarters  of  Washington.  Carriages  for  all  were 
provided  and  upon  arrival  we  were  welcomed  by 
Hon.  Joel  T.  Headley,  in  behalf  of  the  Trustees. 
His  address  was  a  long  but  an  exceedingly  inter 
esting  one,  calculated  to  impress  us  with  the  sacred 
memories  clustering  about  the  spot.  It  would  be 
interesting  reading  today,  but  its  length  is  unsuited 
to  this  review.  The  conclusion,  however,  may 
well  be  reproduced. 

"Yet  here,  right  in  front  of  this  building,  the 
old,  ragged,  Continentals  were  drawn  up  in  line 
for  the  last  time,  and  here  they  broke  ranks  for 
the  last  time,  while  the  band  played  the  mournful 
tune  of  Roslyn  Castle  with  which  they  were  accus 
tomed  to  bear  their  dead  comrades  to  their  graves. 
Then  ensued  a  scene  that  the  pen  of  the  historian 
has  never  described  and  never  will.  Gallant 
officers  who  had  ridden  all  steadily  through  the 
storm  of  battle  and  periled  their  lives  without  fear 
or  thought,  for  the  sake  of  their  country,  stood 
alone,  or  in  groups,  on  this  green  bluff,  penniless 
and  with  no  way  of  reaching  their  still  more  penni 
less  families,  except  by  begging.  Of  all  the  sad 
scenes  that  long  sad  war  produced,  this  last  break 
ing  up  of  the  army  furnished  the  saddest  of  all.  I 
will  not  attempt  to  portray  it.  I  will  only  say  the 

[     46     ] 


conflict  was  over,  and  the  flag  that  had  floated  over 
this  building  for  more  than  a  year  and  a  half  was 
taken  down,  and  silence  and  solitude  fell  upon  it. 
It  remained  neglected  and  forgotten  until  1850 
when  the  State,  having  purchased  it,  consecrated 
it  to  its  present  use  amid  imposing  ceremonies. 
General  Scott  pulled  the  halyards  that  sent  the 
flag  up  the  staff,  bearing  the  inscription  of  Liberty 
and  Union,  Now  and  Forever,  One  and  Insepar 
able.  In  floating  out  to  the  breeze  amid  the  ac 
clamation  of  the  people,  it  floats  out  today  a 
welcome  to  the  heroes  of  later  battles  and  of  the 
last  great  conflict  for  the  Union." 

General  Sewall  responded  for  the  society  and 
General  Hooker  made  a  speech  replete  with  pa 
triotism.  General  Sickles  also  addressed  the 
gathering  after  which  another  lunch  was  served, 
to  the  music  of  a  band  stationed  outside,  after 
which  we  re-entered  the  carriages  and  were  driven 
to  Balmville  where  we  rode  through  the  grounds  of 
several  beautiful  estates,  commanding  fine  views  of 
the  Hudson  and  in  returning  stopped  at  the  house 
of  Hon.  Homer  Ramsdell  for  refreshments. 

After  this  the  business  meeting  was  held,  occupy 
ing  little  time.  The  following  resolution  adopted, 
relating  to  General  Mott,  although  he  was  not 
mentioned  by  name,  was  the  only  action  of  note. 

"WHEREAS,  one  of  our  most  distinguished  com 
rades,  an  ex-President  of  the  Union,  has  recently 
passed  through  the  fires  of  a  Legislative  investiga 
tion,  on  charges  affecting  his  character  as  a  public 
officer  and  a  man,  and 

"WHEREAS,  He  was  honorably  acquitted  of  the 
same  and  his  character  fully  vindicated,  therefore, 

[     47     ] 


"RESOLVED,  That  we  congratulate  him  on  his 
complete  and  handsome  vindication,  and  hail  his 
presence  here  today  as  that  of  a  worthy  comrade 
and  gentleman.  We  rejoice  at  the  record  he  has 
made,  both  at  home  and  in  the  army,  and  tender 
him  the  assurances  of  our  renewed  confidence  and 


esteem/5 


The  dinner  was  an  elaborate  and  prolonged  one. 
Among  the  guests  were  General  Schofield  and 
Colonel  Batchelder,  the  historian  of  Gettysburg. 
The  speakers  were  many  but  notably  Generals 
Hooker,  Sickles  and  Robinson.  The  memory  of 
Lincoln  was  responded  to  by  Judge  Taylor,  who 
during  his  speech  said,  "And  now  guide  your  eyes, 
gentlemen,  (pointing  to  a  flag),  to  the  flag  that 
decorated  the  box  in  that  theatre  where  Mr. 
Lincoln  sat,  that  flag  that  caught  the  foot  of  the 
assassin  as  he  jumped  from  the  box  to  the  stage, 
the  flag  that  secured  the  arrest  and  conviction  and 
the  ultimate  death  of  the  assassin.  It  appears  as 
if  that  flag,  which  you  had  been  defending  for  four 
long  years,  in  the  defence  of  which  thousands  of 
lives  and  millions  of  money  had  been  expended, 
rose  instinctively  to  arrest  that  dastardly  assassin 
and  caught  him  on  the  stage  of  the  theatre  and 
secured  his  ultimate  execution.  There  is  more 
in  that  flag,  gentlemen,  than  many  think.  You 
have  loved  it  greatly.  You  have  risked  your  all, 
sacrificed  your  all,  for  its  defence.  And  it  appears 
as  if,  in  times  of  peril  and  emergency,  there  exists 
in  it  an  instinct  for  its  own  protection,  that  will 
rise  to  defend  itself  against  a  dastardly  and  cow 
ardly  attack."  The  speech-making  was  kept  up 

[     48     ] 


until  a  late  hour,  many  who  had  never,  or  seldom, 
been  heard  at  the  meetings,  being  obliged  to  say 
something.  All  joined  hands  and  sang  "Auld 
Lang  Syne"  and  our  fifteenth  anniversary  ban 
quet  ended. 

The  next  day  four  carriage  loads  drove  to  West 
Point  over  the  new  mountain  road.  There  were 
Generals  Hooker,  Sewall  and  Rusling;  Chaplains 
Twichell  and  Hall;  Colonels  Welling  and  Bachel- 
der;  Majors  Purdy,  Noonan  and  Shreve.  Several 
ladies  were  also  of  the  party.  The  day  was  spent 
in  viewing  the  grounds  and  taking  in  the  beauties 
of  the  spot,  but  beyond  no  one  of  the  number  will 
ever  forget  the  life  infused  into  the  company  by 
the  conversation  of  General  Hooker,  with  his 
reminiscences  of  Cadet  life  and  of  distinguished 
people  of  the  generation,  in  every  walk  of  life, 
from  Kate  Chase  to  "Saint  Abraham". 

The  meeting  of  1879  was  held  at  Delmonico's 
in  New  York.  General  Henry  E.  Tremain  was 
elected  President  and  General  Edwin  R.  Biles 
Vice  President.  A  discussion  arose  upon  a  motion 
to  repeal  that  clause  of  the  constitution  providing 
for  members  in  succession.  The  motion  was  lost. 

There  were  present  at  the  dinner  Generals 
Hooker,  Sickles,  Robinson,  Davis,  Tibbetts,  Gra 
ham  and  Mott. 

At  the  meeting  of  May  fifth,  1880,  about  thirty 
members  were  present,  General  Biles  in  the  chair. 
Inasmuch  as  it  had  been  previously  determined  to 
hold  a  meeting  at  Cape  May  City  on  the  eighth 
of  July,  this  was  merely  to  comply  with  the  re 
quirements  of  the  constitution. 

Attention  was  called   to  the  deaths  since  our 

[     49     ] 


last  meeting  of  Generals  Hooker,  Heintzleman  and 
Tibbetts,  and  Generals  De  Peyster,  Robinson  and 
Colonel  Otis  were  requested  to  prepare  "suitable 
resolutions". 

After  a  lunch  the  party  sailed  down  the  harbor, 
by  invitation  of  General  Graham,  on  a  Govern 
ment  tug.  In  the  evening  General  Sickles  enter 
tained  a  few  at  dinner. 

The  adjourned  meeting  at  Cape  May  was  largely 
attended.  The  report  of  the  Treasurer  and  a 
roster  of  members  was  issued  in  this  year. 

In  1 88 1  the  meeting  was  at  the  Astor  House, 
New  York.  General  Biles  was  elected  President 
and  Major  Shreve  ,  Vice  President.  Following  the 
business  meeting  a  large  party  accepted  the  invi 
tation  of  General  Graham  to  sail  down  the  harbor, 
which  sail  was  quite  beyond  Sandy  Hook,  giving 
the  comrades  a  healthy  appetite  for  the  dinner  in 
the  evening. 

About  seventy  sat  down  at  this  banquet,  almost 
all  members,  as  at  that  day  the  ladies  were  not 
invited  to  swell  the  number. 

The  reports  of  the  committee  of  the  resolutions 
on  the  deaths  of  Generals  Hooker  and  Heintzle 
man  were  presented  at  this  meeting  and  later  were 
printed. 

In  1882  the  meeting  was  in  Jersey  City,  at  the 
Hotel  Windsor.  Major  William  P.  Shreve  was 
elected  President  and  Major  Bullard,  Vice  Presi 
dent.  On  motion  a  committee  was  named  to  con 
fer  with  Colonel  Bachelder  upon  the  position  of  the 
Third  Corps  monuments  at  Gettysburg.  A  sug 
gestion  was  made  looking  to  having  the  Union 

[     50     ] 


incorporated,  but  the  committee  named  for  that 
purpose  has  never  reported. 

The  annual  meeting  of  1883  was  at  Washington, 
May  sixteenth,  adjourned  from  the  fifth.  Where 
that  was  held  is  not  shown.  This  arrangement 
was  that  we  might  meet  with  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac  Society.  There  was  no  dinner  of  the 
Corps,  but  all  joined  with  the  Potomac  Society  in 
the  celebration  and  therefore  the  Corps  meeting, 
as  such,  was  practically  lost  sight  of.  This  meet 
ing  extinguished  what  sentiment  there  was  in  our 
society  for  changing  our  meetings  to  the  dates  of 
the  Potomac  Army.  Hereafter,  save  on  special 
occasions,  we  decided  to  keep  our  individuality 
and  celebrate  our  own  anniversary. 

In  1884  the  meeting  was  in  New  York.  Major 
J.  Barclay  Fassitt  was  elected  President  and  Colo 
nel  Morgan,  Vice  President.  The  dinner  was  at 
Sieghortner's,  32  Lafayette  Place.  Nothing  is 
known  about  this  meeting  other  than  this,  the 
Secretary  being  kept  from  it,  as  a  resolution  shows, 
by  family  affliction. 

The  meeting  of  1885  was  held  in  New  York. 
Colonel  Bankson  T.  Morgan  was  elected  Presi 
dent  and  Colonel  RafFerty,  Vice  President.  The 
meeting  was  one  of  the  saddest  in  the  history  of 
the  Union  because  of  the  death  of  General  Mott, 
in  the  previous  November.  He  had  been  the  first 
and  only  Treasurer,  and  Major  William  P.  Shreve 
was  chosen  as  his  successor.  In  the  absence  of 
the  resolutions  passed  at  this  time  it  is  not  inap 
propriate  to  honor  the  memory  of  this  well  loved 
comrade  by  quoting  the  following  obituary  notice. 

"General  Gershom  Mott,  a  distinguished  sol- 

[     51     ] 


dier  of  the  volunteer  service  during  the  Civil  War, 
and  a  veteran  of  the  Mexican  War,  died  suddenly 
in  New  York  City  of  heart  disease  on  November 
twenty-ninth. 

"On  April  twenty-third,  1847,  ne  was  appointed 
a  Second  Lieutenant  of  the  Tenth  U.  S.  Infantry 
and  remained  in  service  until  1848,  when  he 
returned  to  his  native  state,  New  Jersey.  When 
the  war  broke  out  he  was  commissioned  Lieuten 
ant  Colonel  of  the  Fifth  New  Jersey  Volunteers, 
and  for  his  distinguished  conduct  was  soon  after 
wards  promoted  to  Colonel  of  the  Sixth  New  Jersey. 
For  gallantry  at  Bull  Run,  where  he  was  severely 
wounded,  he  was  promoted  Brigadier  General. 
He  was,  on  returning  to  the  field,  assigned  to  the 
command  of  the  Third  Brigade,  Second  Division, 
Third  Corps  of  the  Potomac,  succeeding  to  the 
command  of  the  Division.  At  the  Battle  of  Chan- 
cellorsville  General  Mott  was  again  wounded.  On 
September  tenth,  1864,  he  was  brevetted  Major 
General  and  when  the  army  was  disbanded  he  was 
placed  in  command  of  the  Provisional  Corps, 
which  was  formed  of  the  remnants  of  the  Second 
and  Third  Corps.  When  that  was  mustered  out 
General  Mott  was  appointed  on  the  Wirz  Com 
mission.  He  was  promoted  to  the  full  rank  of 
Major  General,  and  on  the  twentieth  of  February 
1866,  left  the  service  under  a  resignation,  pre 
viously  tendered.  Since  then  he  has  held  several 
prominent  positions  in  his  native  state,  one  of 
them  the  commander  of  the  New  Jersey  National 
Guard,  with  the  rank  of  Major  General.  The 
body  was  escorted  to  the  State  House  in  Trenton 
by  the  National  Guard.  It  laid  in  state  from 


noon  to  two  P.  M.  The  Governor  and  other 
distinguished  officials  were  present  and  Major 
General  Hancock,  his  warm  friend,  attended  by 
his  staff.  The  remains  were  taken  to  Riverview 
Cemetery  for  interment." 

A  resolution  was  passed  congratulating  General 
Grant  upon  his  "Having  started  on  the  road  to 
recovery."  Another  was  sent  to  the  Society  of  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac,  in  session  at  Baltimore, 
asking  their  support  in  a  petition  to  Congress  to 
make  an  appropriation  for  a  statue  to  General 
Hooker. 

The  meeting  of  1886  was  in  New  York,  at  the 
Hoffman  House.  Colonel  Thomas  Rafferty  was 
elected  President  and  Colonel  A.  Judson  Clark, 
Vice-President.  General  Sickles  moved  the  ap 
pointment  of  a  committee  inviting  the  officers, 
non-commissioned  officers  and  privates  belongingto 
the  Third  Corps  to  assemble  at  Gettysburg  on 
the  second  of  July  next,  to  celebrate  the  twenty- 
third  anniversary  of  the  battle. 

To  the  Treasurer  this  meeting  is  memorable 
as  the  one  on  which  the  first  money  was  taken  from 
the  Permanent  fund  for  expenses.  The  most 
important  measure  introduced,  and  one  that  at  first 
seemed  so  radical  as  to  be  impossible  of  success, 
was  that  of  General  Sickles,  which  proposed  an 
amendment  to  the  constitution  providing  for  the 
admission  of  private  soldiers  to  the  privileges  of 
membership  in  the  Union.  It  was  passed  in  the 
following  year  and  the  result  has  been  greater 
than  could  have  been  expected,  in  promoting  the 
best  interests  of  the  Society  and  giving  it  a  new 
life. 

[     53     ] 


The  meeting  of  1887  was  held  at  the  Windsor 
Hotel  in  New  York.  Colonel  A.  Judson  Clark 
was  elected  President  and  General  Collis,  Vice 
President.  A  committee  was  appointed,  on  motion 
of  General  Sickles,  "To  take  steps  looking  to  a 
reunion  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  and  the  Army 
of  Northern  Virginia,  at  Gettysburg,  on  the  anni 
versary  of  the  battle  in  1888."  Those  appointed 
were  Generals  Carr,  Sharpe,  Robinson  and  Gra 
ham,  and  Colonels  McMichael  and  Clark. 

The  report  of  the  Secretary,  that  has  been  pre 
served,  closes  thus: — "As  we  come  hither  each 
year  to  grasp  one  another's  hands  in  joyous  greet 
ing,  it  seems  that  the  heads  grow  a  trifle  whiter, 
the  voices  slightly  more  tremulous,  the  step  a 
little  less  elastic  —  but  the  heart,  aye,  the  heart, 
is  just  as  young,  just  as  buoyant,  just  as  fresh  as 
in  the  good  old  days  of  yore.  In  one  more  year 
those  of  us  who  can  answer  the  roll  call  will 
come  to  the  celebration  of  the  twenty-fifth  anni 
versary  of  the  Third  Corps  Union.  A  quarter  of 
a  century!  and  what  a  host  of  precious  memories 
are  centered  in  those  words!  What  forms,  long 
since  gone  to  their  rest  are  conjured  up  in  this 
presence,  what  a  history  is  written  in  that  recol 
lection  ! 

"Absorbed  in  such  reflections  we  can  easily 
imagine  ourselves  once  again  in  the  midst  of  war's 
dread  preparations,  and  from  our  watch  tower 
looking  down  on  such  scenes,  as  we  all  have  wit 
nessed,  can  say: 

"Is  it  the  frost  that  glitters  so  white! 
Is  it  the  wind  in  yonder  glen! 

[     54     ] 


No!  No!  there  are  tents  on  the  mountain  height 
And  that  is  the  marshalling  sound  of  men. 

Bright  o'er  an  army  the  morning  shines, 
Gleaming  as  o'er  a  ruffled  lake; 
Dark  lie  the  cannons  along  the  lines, 
Like  hurricane  clouds  before  they  break. 

Over  the  hill  and  over  the  valley 
Wildly  the  clarions  call  to  the  rally! 
Float,  banner,  float!  bright  as  the  sunset, 
Blow,  bugles,  blow!  blow  for  the  onset." 

"Those  of  us  who  have  survived  the  conflict, 
after  witnessing  the  ravages  of  the  battle  field 
and  the  ruins  that  smouldered  in  war's  wasting 
track,  purpose  with  the  nation's  help,  to  people 
these  fields  with  voiceless  tenants.  There  we 
propose  shall  stand  the  storied  urn  and  animated 
bust!  there  shall  be  brought  the  marble  of  Italy 
and  New  England  and  the  soft  tinted  free  stone, 
from  the  bosom  of  our  own  prairies,  wrought  into 
a  thousand  memorial  shapes,  and  telling  the  story 
of  a  thousand  heroic  lives.  And  there  too,  realiz 
ing  the  contrast  of  the  before  and  the  after,  which 
the  pen  of  Tennyson  so  grandly  describes,  again 
accept  his  word  as  the  voice  of  our  souls: — 

"Is  it  a  ruin  old  and  gray 
That  glimmers  in  dusky  twilight  so  ? 
A  ruin  whose  walls  and  people  lay 
Mingled  together,  in  dust  below, 
O'er  which  the  moon  of  lurid  red 
Wanders  in  smoky  vapors  lost  ? 

[    55    ] 


No!  No!  'tis  the  shadow  field  of  the  dead, 
And  the  wreck  of  a  discomfited  foe! 
Over  the  hill  and  over  the  valley, 
Never  shall  clarion  call  them  to  rally, 
Droop,  banners,  droop,  droop  like  the  willow! 
Weep,  angels,  weep!  O'er  the  soldier's  pillow!" 

The  meeting  in  1888  was  held  at  the  Windsor 
Hotel  in  New  York.  General  Sickles  was  elected 
President  and  General  Collis,  Vice  President. 

The  following  letter  was  read.  After  reading  it 
was  laid  on  the  table  without  action. 

"To  the  Directors, 

Third  Corps  Union, 
Comrades: — 

I  hereby  respectfully  tender  my  resignation  of 
the  position  held  for  many  years  of  Trustee  of  the 
Permanent  Fund.  I  do  so  because  The  Corps 
has  honored  me  sufficiently  by  having  made  me, 
during  my  long  connection  with  it,  President  for 
two  terms,  Vice  President,  Director  and  Trustee, 
and  I  have  arrived  at  that  time  of  life  when  I  no 
longer  desire  to  be  troubled  with  any  official  posi 
tion,  but  simply  to  be  one  of  the  rank  and  file. 
Moreover,  I  hold  strongly  to  the  opinion  that  the 
interest  of  the  Corps  will  best  be  served  by  rota 
tion  in  office,  and  the  infusion  of  new  blood  into 
prominent  positions. 

Cordially  yours, 
(Signed)  CHARLES  K.  GRAHAM." 

It  was  ordered  that  another  roster  be  printed, 
that  a  design  for  a  button-hole  badge  be  prepared, 

[     56     ] 


and  that  all  those  persons  who  had  been  elected 
to  the  Union,  but  had  failed  to  qualify,  be  dropped. 

Among  the  after  dinner  speakers  were  Rev.  J. 
R.  Paxton,  General  Woodford,  General  Horace 
Porter  and  General  Sickles. 

The  report  of  the  Secretary  at  this  meeting  was 
of  the  same  patriotic  character  that  colored  all  his 
words.  He  stated  that  more  members  had  been 
added  to  the  society  during  the  last  year  in  con 
sequence  of  the  amendment  of  the  constitution, 
than  for  the  five  preceding.  Among  the  deaths 
announced  was  that  of  Colonel  RafTerty,  a  former 
President.  In  closing  the  Secretary  said,  "And 
now,  on  the  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  this  society 
and  with  a  grand  reunion  at  Gettysburg  in  the 
near  future,  permit  me  to  speak  a  word  of  an  old 
and  loved  and  trusted  commander,  General  Joe 
Hooker.  Surely  we  ought  not  to  pass  this  occa 
sion  by  without  a  word  to  his  memory.  With  all 
due  deference  to  the  eminent  abilities,  patriotism 
and  honesty  of  General  George  G.  Meade,  the 
battle  of  Gettysburg  was  General  Joe  Hooker's 
conception  and  Joe  Hooker's  victory.  Relin 
quishing  his  command,  at  Frederick,  he  said  with 
moistened  eyes,  '  It  is  all  right,  General  Meade  is 
a  good  fellow  and  a  brave  man  and  will  command 
the  army  well;  individuals  are  of  no  account  in 
this  war,  each  must  do  what  the  country  calls  him 
to  do.'  No  malice,  no  pique,  no  rivalry,  no 
offended  dignity, — only  lofty  patriotism,  high 
conception  of  duty  and  the  loyal  performance  of 
it,  conscientiously  understood,  and  faithfully  per 
formed, — this  was  Joe  Hooker. 

"No  one  man  was  the  entire  hero  of  Gettys- 

[    57    ] 


burg.  Every  soldier  present  there  is  a  sharer 
in  that  honor.  The  influence  of  Hooker  never 
left  the  army  of  the  Potomac  until  it  was  mustered 
out  of  service,  under  the  shadow  of  the  Capitol. 

"And  now,  as  we  enjoy  the  mutual  intercourse 
of  the  hour,  let  us  pledge  ourselves  that  we  will 
meet,  God  willing,  on  the  historic  field,  to  honor 
the  memory  of  the  heroic  dead,  over  whose  graves 
again  gleams  the  shimmer  and  sunshine  of  an 
awakening  spring." 

Less  than  a  month  before  the  meeting  of  1889 
Major  General  Charles  K.  Graham  died  at  Lake- 
wood,  N.  J.  The  funeral  from  the  Presbyterian 
Church  on  Twenty-Third  Street  was  conducted, 
at  his  request,  without  military  honors.  It  is  well 
to  refresh  the  memory  by  recalling  the  record  of 
this  much  loved  comrade,  as  told  at  that  time. 

"Charles  Kinnard  Graham,  civil  engineer,  ex- 
surveyor  and  ex-naval  officer  of  the  port  of  New 
York  died  from  pneumonia,  April  fifteenth,  in  the 
fifty-fifth  year  of  his  age.  In  1841  he  became  a 
midshipman  in  the  Navy,  serving  in  the  Gulf 
during  the  Mexican  War,  after  which  he  resigned, 
returning  to  his  native  city  and  devoting  himself 
to  the  study  of  civil  engineering.  In  1857  he  was 
appointed  constructing  engineer  of  the  Brooklyn 
Navy  Yard,  the  dry  docks  and  landings  being 
built  under  his  supervision.  In  1861  he  joined 
the  army  and  became  Colonel  of  the  Fifth  Ex 
celsior  Regiment  and  in  November,  1863,  a  Briga 
dier  General.  He  was  severely  wounded  in  the 
Battle  of  Gettysburg  and  after  recovery  was 
assigned  to  the  command  of  gun  boats  on  the 
James  River,  and  was  the  first  to  carry  our  colors 

[     58    ] 


up  that  river  in  1864.  He  was  brevetted  Major 
General  in  March,  1865.  From  1873  to  1875  he 
was  chief  engineer  of  the  Dock  Department,  and 
surveyor  of  the  port  of  New  York,  from  1878  to 
1883.  In  that  year  he  was  appointed  naval  officer, 
which  post  he  held  until  1885.  He  leaves  no 
family,  being  predeceased  by  his  wife  in  August 
last." 

The  meeting  of  1889  was  held  at  the  Windsor. 
General  Collis  was  elected  President  and  Colonel 
Weygant,  Vice  President.  Among  the  letters  read 
by  the  Secretary  was  one  from  General  Pleasanton 
regretting  his  inability  to  attend.  The  resolutions 
on  the  death  of  General  Graham  are  not  incor 
porated  in  the  report. 

At  the  dinner  were  present  Generals  Sherman 
and  Butterfield  and  Judge  Brady.  General  Sher 
man  was  elected  an  honorary  member  and  pre 
sented  with  a  badge  of  the  society. 

At  this  date  the  Secretary's  record  book  closes 
and  when  the  new  one  opens  the  first  entry  is  for 
the  year  1896.  The  only  knowledge  of  what  was 
done  during  those  years  is  gleaned  from  the  manu 
script  reports  of  the  Secretary  for  1892,  (this 
report  was  printed)  1894,  1895  and  1896.  The 
only  facts  to  be  obtained  from  them  are  the  names 
of  those  who  had  died  during  the  year,  yet  they 
are  most  interesting  reading.  A  few  clippings 
from  the  newspapers  add  somewhat  to  our  knowl 
edge. 

The  meeting  of  1890  was  held  in  Newburg, 
as  agreed  at  the  previous  meeting,  and  Colonel 
Charles  Weygant  was  elected  President.  The 
absence  of  the  Treasurer  from  that  meeting  ac- 

[    59    ] 


counts  for  not  even  the  newspaper  notices  having 
been  preserved. 

The  meeting  of  1891  was  probably  held  in  Troy, 
New  York,  where  General  Joseph  B.  Carr  was 
elected  President.  The  Treasurer  was  again 
absent. 

The  meeting  of  1892  was  held  in  Boston,  where 
Colonel  William  L.  Candler  was  elected  President 
and  Captain  Benjamin  Murphy,  Vice  President. 
Our  latest  roster  gives  Captain  Murphy  as  the 
President  elected,  but  it  is  an  error,  as  he  was 
not  chosen  until  the  following.  For  this  meeting 
a  local  committee  was  appointed  and  every  means 
used  to  make  the  occasion  a  success,  as  it  cer 
tainly  was,  and  to  add  members  to  the  society, 
particularly  from  the  enlisted  men.  The  presence 
of  Generals  Carr,  Sickles  and  Butterfield  made 
the  occasion  a  noted  one.  After  the  business 
meeting  the  comrades  were  escorted  to  Long  Wharf 
by  the  band  of  the  First  Regiment,  where  three 
steamers  were  at  their  disposal  for  a  sail  down 
the  harbor.  Governor  Russell,  the  Mayor  of  Bos 
ton,  many  invited  guests,  including  ladies,  were 
of  the  party.  At  Deer  Island  lunch  was  offered 
by  the  city,  after  which  the  party  re-embarked 
and  went  to  Fort  Warren  where  a  salute  of  seven 
teen  guns  was  given  and  they  were  received  with 
military  honors.  At  six  o'clock  they  were  back 
again  at  the  Parker  House,  where  dinner  was 
served  at  seven.  There  were  more  than  the  usual 
number  of  invited  guests  and  speakers,  the  Gov 
ernor  being  the  chief  attraction,  who  in  concluding 
an  eloquent  speech  said: — "When  General  Sickles 
and  General  Longstreet  met  in  cordial  friendship 

[    60    ] 


and  recalled  the  days  of  their  bitter  and  almost 
fatal  hostility,  when  southern  and  northern  troops 
can  meet  on  battle  fields  and  about  those  memo 
rials  which  will  make  history  for  future  genera 
tions,  when  they  can  exchange  trophies  of  war,  I 
think  it  is  too  late  for  any  other  men  to  recall  the 
bitterness  of  the  fight,  the  hatred  that  separated 
us  into  sections,  controversies  that  now,  thank 
God,  are  ended.  It  is  time  to  rejoice  that  God 
has  reunited  us  all." 

In  the  course  of  his  remarks  General  Sickles 
said: — "General  Hooker  once  said  that  the  great 
est  pleasure  in  life  was  campaigning  in  the  coun 
try  of  the  enemy,  but  I  would  somewhat  amend 
that  and  say  that  the  charm  of  life  is  campaigning 
in  the  country  of  friends,  with  the  Governor  of 
Massachusetts  and  the  Mayor  of  Boston  for  your 
hosts." 

The  only  thing  to  be  said  for  the  meeting  of 
1893,  that  was  held  at  the  Plaza,  New  York,  is 
that  Captain  Benjamin  Murphy  was  elected  Presi 
dent.  A  committee  was  named  to  look  after  the 
arrangements  of  the  meeting  in  Washington,  in  the 
following  year. 

The  meeting  at  Washington  in  1894  lasted  two 
days.  The  local  committee  was  composed  of 
General  Chauncey  McKeever,  General  Joseph 
Dickinson,  Dr.  James  E.  Dexter  and  Captain  M. 
J.  Foote.  Among  the  many  recreations  was  a 
tally-ho  ride  to  Arlington  and  Cabin  John  Bridge. 
Colonel  William  Plimley  was  elected  President. 

As  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  were  issued 
in  pamphlet  form,  we  know  that  the  constitution 
was  once  more  amended,  this  time  to  permit  of 

[     61     ] 


the  formation  of  "auxiliary  branches"  of  the 
Union,  where  there  were  survivors  of  the  Corps. 
The  only  place  that  took  advantage  of  the  privi 
lege  was  Washington. 

A  resolution  was  passed  requesting  General 
Sickles  to  present  to  the  Secretary  of  War  the 
application  of  Major  J.  Barclay  Fassitt  for  a 
medal  of  honor  for  an  act  of  distinguished  gallan 
try  in  recapturing  a  battery  at  Gettysbury.  (This 
was  in  due  course  bestowed  upon  Captain  Fassitt.) 
Colonel  Bumpus  presented  to  the  Union  the  origi 
nal  draft  of  the  minutes  of  the  first  meeting  of  the 
Third  Army  Corps  Union,  dated  September  sec 
ond,  1863,  and  signed  by  Captain  J.  C.  Briscoe. 
(The  present  whereabouts  of  these  minutes  is  not 
known.)  A  resolution  was  passed  deprecating  the 
discharge  of  veterans  from  the  public  service. 

After  the  business  meeting  a  reception  was  given 
at  the  White  House  and  later  a  visit  was  made  to 
the  Capitol.  The  announcement  that  the  next 
meeting  would  be  held  in  Hadley,  Mass.,  the  birth 
place  of  General  Hooker  was  received  with  much 
enthusiasm  and  preliminary  steps  were  taken 
looking  to  the  event. 

On  the  twentieth  of  December,  previous  to  this 
meeting,  the  President,  Colonel  William  L.  Candler, 
died.  He  was  buried  with  full  military  honors, 
from  Trinity  Church,  Boston,  by  the  Military 
Order  of  the  Loyal  Legion.  In  the  army  Colonel 
Candler  was  most  widely  known  as  an  Aide  on 
the  staff  of  General  Hooker.  In  the  resolutions 
passed  at  the  time  it  was  most  truthfully  said  that 
"To  us  who  knew  him  well  it  is  saying  but  little 
of  a  career  which  was  so  distinguished  as  Colonel 

[     62     ] 


Candler's,  that  he  was  a  most  gallant,  intelligent 
and  conspicuous  figure  through  all  the  vicissitudes 
of  the  campaigns  of  the  Third  Corps,  sharing  with 
fortitude  the  disasters  and  contributing  to  its 
glories." 

Colonel  Candler  entered  the  service  as  First 
Lieutenant,  First  Massachusetts,  in  1861;  was 
promoted  Captain  and  A.  A.  G.  in  1862;  Brevet 
Major,  March  1865,  for  gallantry  at  Fair  Oaks; 
Lieutenant  Colonel  in  1865  for  gallant  conduct 
at  Antietam  and  Colonel  for  same  at  Chancellors- 
ville. 

Another  death  in  March  of  this  year,  was  that 
of  General  Hiram  Berdan.  He  was  without  any 
military  training  but  was  a  noted  rifleman,  at  the 
outbreak  of  the  war,  and  conceived  the  idea  of 
enlisting  a  regiment  of  experts,  to  be  armed  with 
target  rifles,  and  used  as  sharp  shooters.  The 
First  Regiment  was  easily  raised,  a  company  from 
each  of  the  states  being  the  first  idea,  but  so  many 
recruits  appeared  that  some  states  furnished  two. 
This  led  to  the  Second  Regiment  which  was  never 
recruited  above  eight  companies.  Once  in  Wash 
ington  Colonel  Berdan  modified  his  plan  and 
besieged  the  War  Department  for  breech  loading 
rifles.  His  persistency  was  so  great  that  he  made 
himself  a  terror  to  the  department,  but  he  finally 
obtained  Colt's  revolving  rifles  which  nearly  caused 
a  mutiny  in  the  regiments,  as  they  had  been 
promised  Sharps.  The  Second  Regiment,  how 
ever,  compromised  on  the  promise  that  the  Sharps 
would  come  later  and  was  attached  to  General 
McDowell,  while  the  First  went  to  the  Peninsula. 
Could  the  history  of  all  these  companies  be  told 

[     63     ] 


it  would  fill  several  volumes.  At  Chancellorsville 
and  Gettysburg  they  did  remarkable  service,  for 
which  Berdan  was  brevetted  Brigadier  and  Major 
General.  He  was  mustered  out  after  the  latter 
fight  because  of  his  failure  to  obtain  the  appoint 
ment  of  Brigadier. 

The  dinner  at  Willard's  was  in  every  way  a 
success.  A  poem  by  David  Graham  Adee  entitled 
Gettysburg  and  inscribed  to  the  survivors  of  the 
Corps  was  read.  A  single  verse  will  give  an  idea 
of  the  quality: — 

"Twas  the  third  day  of  the  fight 
And  the  guns  upon  our  right 
Were  booming  shot  and  shell 
And  we  heard  the  Rebel  yell, 
When  in  front  of  his  command, 
With  his  brave  sword  in  his  hand, 
Amid  flaming  fires  of  hell 
That  our  gallant  leader  fell, 
At  Gettysburg." 

Unfortunately  for  the  meter  it  was  the  second 
day  instead  of  the  third  that  witnessed  the  scene 
he  embalmed  in  verse. 

The  meeting  in  Hadley,  the  birthplace  of 
General  Hooker,  on  the  sixth  of  May,  1895,  the 
fifth  falling  on  Sunday,  would  take  quite  a  book 
to  describe  thoroughly.  The  most  thorough  prep 
arations  were  made  for  it  by  committees,  both  the 
local  and  those  in  New  York  and  Boston.  In  the 
latter  place  it  was  conceived  and  from  there  most 
of  the  work  was  done  that  resulted  in  procuring 
a  life  size  portrait  of  the  General,  painted  by 
Harvey  Young,  that  was  presented  to  the  Town  of 


Hadley.  It  was  in  every  way  satisfactory  as  a 
likeness  and  a  work  of  art  and  will  grace  the 
Town  Hall  for  many  years  to  come  and  help  to  add 
another  chapter  of  patriotism  to  those  already 
written  in  the  history  of  that  ancient  and  beauti 
ful  town.  A  bronze  tablet  was  also  placed  on  the 
house  in  which  the  General  was  born,  and  which 
unfortunately  was  burned  April  6,  1898. 

The  extraordinary  expense  to  be  incurred  re 
quiring  the  raising  of  quite  a  sum  of  money  and 
from  every  quarter,  in  sums  from  a  dollar  up, 
there  was  realized  the  amount  of  twenty-six  hun 
dred  dollars  and  a  little  over.  An  immense  tent 
was  provided,  in  which  the  exercises  were  held, 
and  probably  up  to  that  time  this  little  town  had 
never  seen  such  an  immense  gathering. 

The  exercises  opened  Monday  evening  with  a 
Camp  Fire  by  the  Grand  Army,  in  the  Northamp 
ton  Opera  House.  On  Tuesday  morning  between 
seven  and  eight  the  men  fell  in  behind  the  division 
and  brigade  flags  that  had  been  provided  for  this 
occasion,  and  escorted  by  W.  L.  Baker  Post,  of  the 
Grand  Army  of  Northampton,  numbering  one 
hundred  and  sixty  men,  St.  Joseph's  band  of 
twenty-two  pieces,  Company  I,  Second  Regiment 
M.  V.  M.,  Agricultural  College  Cadets,  with  their 
band  of  sixteen  pieces,  and  the  Meadow  City  drum 
corps  of  twenty  pieces,  they  paraded  the  streets  of 
Northampton.  There  were  about  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  Third  Corps  men  in  the  column, 
led  by  General  Chauncey  McKeever,  followed  by 
General  Sickles,  General  Tremain  and  the  ladies 
of  the  party  in  carriages.  The  rear  of  the  column 
was  brought  up  by  Edwin  L.  Stanton  Post  of 

r  65  i 


Amherst.  At  the  station  a  train  of  ten  cars  was 
waiting  to  convey  them  to  Hadley,  with  the  excep 
tion  of  those  in  carriages,  who  took  the  delightful 
country  drive.  The  ladies  were  Mrs,  T.  R. 
Mathews  and  Miss  Kennard,  Mrs.  G.  W.  West, 
Miss  Sylvester,  Mrs.  Cook,  Miss  Welling,  Mrs. 
Lucy  Berry  Snow. 

Other  than  Third  Corps  men  there  were  no 
distinguished  officers.  There  were,  however, 
brought  together  for  the  first  time  Cadet  Heintzle- 
man,  a  grandson  of  General  Heintzleman,  Mr. 
Hiram  Berry  Snow,  a  grandson  of  General  Berry 
who  was  killed  at  Chancellorsville,  and  Colonel 
Joseph  Hooker  Wood,  a  nephew  of  General 
Hooker.  These  all  joined  the  Union,  the  first 
two  as  life  members. 

Arriving  at  Hadley  the  column  was  reinforced 
by  the  following  organizations : — Second  Regiment 
Band  from  Springfield,  and  Posts  E.  K.  Wilcox, 
Kilpatrick,  GeorgeC.  Strong  and  Charles  C.  Smith. 
Thence  through  the  broad,  elm-shaded  street  of  old 
Hadley  they  passed  to  the  great  tent  that  was  sup 
posed  to  seat  thirty-five  hundred  people,  but  was 
too  small  to  accommodate  the  crowd. 

After  "attention"  had  been  sounded  by  the 
bugler  the  prayer  was  made  by  Comrade  Reverend 
St.  John  Chambre.  Comrade  Orville  W.  Prouty 
of  the  Selectmen  of  Hadley  welcomed  us  to  the 
town  and  the  President,  Major  William  Plimley, 
responded.  General  John  W.  Kimball  gave  the 
welcome  to  Massachusetts  after  which  there  was 
music  by  the  Glee  Club  of  Hopkins  Academy  and 
a  poem  by  Comrade  J.  Howard  Jewett.  Gen 
eral  H.  E.  Tremain  then  gave  the  address  upon  the 

[     66     ] 


life  and  service  of  General  Hooker,  a  scholarly  and 
carefully  prepared  eulogy  that  has  since  been 
printed  with  other  writings  of  the  author.  Gen 
eral  Sickles  presented  the  portrait  of  General 
Hooker,  in  a  lengthy  address,  mostly  reminiscent 
and  personal  and  the  picture  was  accepted  by  Dr. 
Franklin  Bonney,  in  behalf  of  the  town.  It  is 
needless  to  say  that  all  of  these  proceedings  are  a 
volume  in  themselves,  to  say  nothing  of  the  articles 
in  the  newspapers  of  the  day  brought  forth  by  the 
occasion,  not  in  Massachusetts  alone,  but  also  in 
New  York  and  Pennsylvania. 

The  dinner  was  served  in  the  Northampton 
City  Hall  and  was  only  a  great  continuation  of 
the  ceremonies  in  the  tent,  all  and  everything 
being  in  memory  of  Hooker. 

It  was  from  the  initiative  of  this  meeting  that 
came  the  effort  that  culminated  in  the  appropria 
tion  of  fifty  thousand  dollars  and  the  erection  of 
the  statue  of  Hooker,  by  the  Commonwealth,  on 
the  grounds  adjoining  the  State  House  in  Boston, 
in  June,  1903. 

The  officers  elected  at  Hadley  were  Captain 
Isaac  P.  Gragg,  President  and  General  James  F. 
Rusling,  Vice  President. 

The  meeting  of  1896  was  held  in  Portland, 
Maine,  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  June.  The  ad 
journment  to  that  later  date  was  out  of  deference 
to  the  eastern  climate.  Of  this  meeting  it  can 
truthfully  be  said,  not  alone  that  no  other  was  more 
enjoyable,  but  that  the  business  end  of  it  was 
longer  than  any  on  record.  This  is  accounted  for 
by  the  fact  that  a  thorough  revision  of  the  con 
stitution  and  by-laws  had  been  made  in  the  year 

[     67     ] 


and  every  article  was  taken  up  and  discussed 
"seriatim".  This  is  the  constitution  that  we  have 
with  our  present  roster,  the  most  complete 
and  satisfactory  that  has  ever  been  made  and 
which  will  remain  so  to  the  end;  the  work  of 
Captain  Gragg.  In  addition  there  was  the  report 
of  the  committee  that  memorialized  the  Common 
wealth  of  Massachusetts  for  the  appropriation  just 
spoken  of.  This  report  acknowledged  the  obliga 
tions  they  were  under  to  General  Francis  A. 
Walker  of  the  Second  Corps,  General  George  A. 
Andrews,  U.  S.  A.  retired,  Hon.  Charles  Carleton 
Coffin,  the  well  known  war  correspondent  and 
author,  Colonel  Henry  Stone,  formerly  of  the  staff 
of  General  Thomas,  Colonel  Henry  S.  Russell  and 
ex-Governor  Boutwell. 

Letters  were  read  from  the  Selectmen  of  Hadley 
communicating  a  vote  of  thanks  by  the  Selectmen 
for  the  portrait  presented,  and  the  whole  financial 
question  consequent  upon  that  meeting  was  pre 
sented  and  discussed,  following  the  report  of  the 
chairman,  General  Mathews.  Without  quoting 
the  report  fully  it  will  be  of  interest  to  note  the 
salient  points.  The  first  estimate  of  the  expense 
of  the  meeting  was  twenty-five  hundred  dollars, 
but  after  visiting  Hadley  and  mapping  out  the 
campaign  it  was  decided  that  five  thousand  dollars 
were  needed.  It  was  proposed  to  raise  this  amount 
as  follows: — One  thousand  from  members  of  the 
Union;  two  from  the  fourteen  thousand  comrades 
outside  the  Union,  one  from  Citizens  of  Massachu 
setts  and  one  from  New  York.  The  result  was 
fourteen  hundred  and  fifty  from  the  Union,  seven 
hundred  and  twenty-five  from  outsiders,  eight  hun- 

[     68     ] 


dred  and  eighty-five  from  Massachusetts,  one  hun 
dred  and  seventy  from  New  York,  and  four  hun 
dred  from  other  sources.  The  members  of  the 
Union  did  all  that  was  expected  of  them  and  more, 
the  others  failed.  "We  left  Hadley  (says  the 
report)  nearly  seventeen  hundred  dollars  to  the 
bad,  but  on  a  second  and  third  appeal  by  circular, 
to  such  comrades  as  we  could  reach,  the  deficit 
has  been  reduced  to  five  hundred  and  fifty  dollars." 
The  committee  asked  to  be  continued  that  it 
might,  if  possible,  secure  that  deficiency. 

A  resolution  was  presented  by  Major  Plimley 
which  is  of  sufficient  interest  to  warrant  repro 
ducing  in  full: — 

"WHEREAS,  There  is  a  vacancy  in  the  position 
of  Medical  Director  of  the  Soldiers'  Home  of 
Hampton,  Virginia,  which  belongs  most  clearly  to 
a  soldier  and  medical  officer  of  the  late  war,  and 

"WHEREAS,  We  have  one,  a  member  of  our 
association,  who  is  by  education,  experience  in  the 
army  and  in  subsequent  life  as  a  physician  and 
surgeon,  amply  qualified  for  the  position, 

"  RESOLVED,  That  we  present  to  General  Wil 
liam  J.  Sewall,  one  of  the  Directors  of  said  home, 
the  name  of  our  honored  Secretary,  Surgeon 
Edward  Livingston  Welling,  as  well  fitted  in  every 
way  for  the  place,  and  urge  upon  General  Sewall 
the  appointment  as  being  not  only  the  wish  of  the 
association,  but  the  wish  of  men  both  in  and  out 
of  the  Third  Army  Corps." 

Another  resolution  voted  with  enthusiasm  was 
in  favor  of  memorializing  the  Legislature  of  Maine 

[     69     ] 


for  an  appropriation  to  erect  a  statue  of  General 
Hiram  Berry. 

Eleven  new  members  were  elected  and  Colonel 
Edward  Moore  was  elected  President.  Bosworth 
Post  kindly  gave  the  use  of  its  hall  for  the  meet 
ing.  In  the  afternoon  a  drive  around  the  shore 
road  and  through  Cape  Elizabeth  was  taken  and 
at  six  o'clock  the  men  marched  to  the  wharf,  accom 
panied  by  a  band  to  meet  the  steamer  from  New 
York  and  welcome  General  Sickles  and  party. 
With  him  were  General  Tremain,  Colonel  Foote, 
Major  Conway  and  Major  Lovell  Purdy.  The 
General  made  a  happy  speech  from  his  carriage 
before  the  procession  started  for  the  hotel. 

The  next  day  there  was  an  excursion  down 
Casco  Bay,  a  reception  by  the  Mayor  at  the  City 
Hall,  and  the  dinner  in  the  evening,  at  the  Sea 
Shore  House,  Old  Orchard  Beach,  closed  the  cele 
bration.  General  Miles  being  in  Portland  at  the 
time,  was  a  guest  at  the  dinner,  as  were  also  Gen 
eral  Chamberlain  and  the  Hon.  T.  B.  Reed. 

In  the  year  1897  a  rather  startling  move  was 
made  in  holding  the  meeting  in  Virginia.  It  is 
believed  that  that  meeting  was  the  first  one  held 
within  what  had  been  the  lines  of  the  Confederacy 
since  the  close  of  the  war,  by  any  body  of  North 
ern  soldiers.  But  while  within  the  limits  of  Vir 
ginia  it  was  upon  soil  that  had  not  been  surren 
dered  and  where  we  were  among  friends  and  com 
rades.  That  place  was  Old  Point  Comfort  (Fortress 
Monroe).  The  choice  was  made  because  of  the 
appointment  of  Colonel  Welling  to  the  position  for 
which  the  meeting  of  the  previous  year  recom 
mended  him,  perhaps  also  because  he  was  very  ill 

[    70    ] 


and  unable  to  travel,  so  that  all  things  considered 
no  better  choice  could  have  been  made. 

The  weather  was  all  that  could  be  desired;  the 
Chamberlin  was  a  hotel  not  only  beautifully  situ 
ated  in  the  center  of  historic  interest,  but  offering 
every  luxury  and  ample  accommodations.  The 
comrades  came  by  rail  and  by  steamer,  in  large 
numbers,  and  many  brought  their  wives  and  chil 
dren  as  never  before.  Among  these  were  General 
Sickles  and  his  charming  daughter,  but  lately  from 
Spain,  General  C.  H.  T.  Collis,  General  Tremain, 
Colonels  Leonard,  Lakin,  Moore,  General  Mc- 
Keever,  General  and  Mrs.  Mathews,  Major  and 
Mrs.  Shreve,  Chaplain  Twichell  and  daughter, 
Captain  C.  W.  Wilson,  Surgeon  Janvrin,  wife  and 
son,  and  many  others  quite  as  well  known,  but 
who  in  the  absence  of  a  list  of  names  must  remain 
unmentioned. 

During  the  two  days  spent  in  that  pleasant  land 
there  were  excursions  to  the  battle  field  of  Williams- 
burg,  to  Hampton,  to  the  Soldiers'  Home  where  we 
met  Colonel  Welling,  who  was  unable  to  come  to  the 
meeting,  as  well  as  to  the  old  town  of  Williams- 
burg,  fascinating  in  its  history,  in  the  buildings 
about  which  clings  the  memory  of  Washington  and 
so  many  revered  and  honored  names,  in  its  college 
and  its  church.  As  we  recall  the  occasion  it  is 
to  wish  we  might  go  there  once  more,  although, 
alas!  how  changed  would  be  the  company! 

At  the  business  meeting  Colonel  Moore  was 
re-elected  President.  The  Hadley  committee  made 
a  final  report,  in  which  they  had  to  confess  their 
inability  to  raise  the  balance  of  the  sum  needed. 
"After  spending  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  and 

[    71    ] 


making  strenuous  efforts  they  have  been  able  to 
raise  only  sufficient  to  pay  the  expense  incurred 
and  reduce  the  deficit  to  four  hundred  and  eighty- 
eight  dollars." 

Notice  having  been  given  of  the  intention  it  was 
moved  that  the  sum  be  appropriated  out  of  the 
Permanent  Fund.  An  amendment  was  made  that 
as  there  was  but  three  hundred  and  fifteen  dollars 
cash  in  the  fund,  that  sum  be  substituted  for 
the  one  asked  for.  This  was  accepted.  General 
Collis  moved  that  "A  paper  be  passed  among  the 
members  present  to  raise  if  possible  the  difference 
of  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  dollars."  In  this 
manner  ninety  dollars  was  secured.  How  the  rest 
was  provided  nowhere  appears,  but  the  invested 
permanent  fund  was  not  encroached  upon. 

Among  the  deaths  of  members  announced  was 
that  of  General  John  C.  Robinson,  U.  S.  A.  and 
the  following  resolutions  were  offered: — (Extract) 
"On  February  eighteenth,  1897,  John  C.  Robinson 
a  member  of  this  association,  departed  this  life  at 
the  advanced  age  of  eighty  years.  Fifty-eight  of 
these  had  been  employed  in  the  service  of  the 
country,  as  an  officer  of  the  army.  To  the  Third 
Corps  he  brought  the  advantage  of  his  education 
at  West  Point  and  his  experience  in  the  Mexican 
War,  his  campaigns  against  the  Indians  in  Texas 
in  1853  to  1856,  and  against  the  Seminoles  in 
Florida.  When  assigned  as  Brigadier  General  to 
the  command  of  a  Brigade  in  the  Third  Corps, 
he  had  already  earned  the  gratitude  of  the  nation 
for  the  stubborn  and  inflexible  loyalty  displayed 
at  Fort  McHenry,  Baltimore,  and  his  soldierly 
qualities  had  been  recognized  in  the  discipline  and 


efficiency   of  the   First   Michigan   Volunteers,   of 
which  he  was  the  Colonel. 

"His  career  upon  the  Peninsula  and  his  whole 
record  with  the  Third  Corps,  culminating  at 
Fredericksburg  on  December  thirteenth,  1862,  has 
added  lustre  to  our  history  and  contributed  largely 
to  our  fame. 

"Though  he  left  us  because  he  was  promoted 
to  higher  command  in  the  First  Corps,  he  always 
cherished  a  warm  affection  for  the  men  who  had 
served  with  Heintzleman,  Hooker  and  Sickles,  and 
he  was  always  glad  to  feel  that  his  training  with 
us  served  him  well  when  called  upon  to  defend 
Oak  Ridge,  at  Gettysburg,  on  the  first  of  the  three 
days'  memorable  fighting,  under  Reynolds.  Not 
until,  in  the  heat  of  the  battle  and  the  front  of  it, 
where  he  gave  a  limb  to  his  country,  did  he  retire 
from  a  contest  to  which  his  whole  soul  was  de 
voted. 

"In  civil  life  he  became  Commander  in  Chief 
of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  and  President 
of  the  Society  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  honors 
meritoriously  won  by  faithful  service. 

"We  claim  the  right  to  mingle  our  tears  with 
those  of  his  surviving  family,  whose  bereavement 
is  no  more  keen  than  our  own." 

John  Cleveland  Robinson  graduated  from  West 
Point  in  the  class  of  1838;  was  promoted  First 
Lieutenant  and  Captain  by  1850  and  Colonel  of 
the  First  Michigan  Infantry  in  1861;  Brigadier 
General  U.  S.  V.  1862;  Major  Second  Infantry 
1862;  Colonel  Forty-third  Infantry  1866;  retired 
Major  General  1869;  Brevet  Lieutenant  Colonel 
1863  for  services  at  Gettysburg;  Colonel  1864  f°r 

[     73     ] 


the  Wilderness;  Brigadier  General  1865  for  Spott- 
sylvania;  Major  General  for  services  during  the 
war;  medal  of  honor  for  gallantry  at  Laurel  Hill, 
Va.,  May  1864,  placing  himself  at  the  head  of  his 
leading  Brigade  in  a  charge  upon  the  works  of 
the  enemy,  where  he  was  wounded  while  serving 
as  Brigadier  General,  commanding  Second  Divi 
sion,  Fifth  Corps. 

Other  deaths  announced  were  those  of  Lieu 
tenant  Benjamin  S.  Calef,  of  the  Second  Sharp 
Shooters  and  the  staff  of  General  Birney,  and 
Lieutenant  Daniel  F.  Brown,  Eighty-sixth  New 
York.  Seven  new  members  were  admitted  and  as 
an  innovation  owing  to  the  illness  of  the  Secre 
tary,  his  daughter,  Louise  Russell  Welling,  was 
elected  as  Assistant  Secretary. 

At  the  dinner  in  the  evening  between  sixty  and 
seventy  were  present.  Colonel  Frank,  command 
ing  Fortress  Monroe,  and  Mrs.  Frank,  were  among 
the  guests.  Invitations  were  extended  to  the 
Governor  of  Virginia  and  the  Mayor  of  Norfolk, 
both  of  whom  declined.  The  Mayor  had,  in  a 
letter  to  Colonel  Welling,  previously  accepted  the 
invitation,  but  at  the  last  moment  declined.  Al 
though  depending  upon  home  talent  for  the 
speeches  there  was  no  lack  of  enthusiasm  and 
General  Collis  added  much  to  the  amusement  of 
the  dinner  by  singing  some  Irish  songs. 

When  the  comrades  left  Old  Point  they  scat 
tered  in  many  ways,  some  going  up  the  James  to 
Richmond  and  on  to  Fredericksburg  and  Wash 
ington  to  visit  the  city  towards  which  their  faces 
had  been  turned  for  so  many  months  without  see 
ing  more  than  the  church  spires,  and  the  familiar 

[     74     ] 


places,  memorable  for  battles  and  camps,  for 
much  hardship,  and  many  never  to  be  forgotten 
scenes  and  pleasures. 

The  meeting  of  1897  must  ever  be  recalled,  so 
long  as  memory  goes  back  to  such  days,  as  the 
summit  and  crown  of  all  our  reunions. 

There  was  no  meeting  in  1898  but  for  what 
reason  is  not  now  recalled.  The  announcement 
said  that  as  it  was  considered  best  to  meet  at  a  later 
date,  Gettysburg  had  been  recommended  as  the 
place. 

The  meeting  of  1899  was  held  at  Hotel  Man 
hattan  in  New  York.  General  Thomas  B. 
Mathews  was  elected  President  and  Chaplain 
Joseph  H.  Twichell  the  Vice  President.  The  re 
cords  are  notable  for  the  number  of  deaths  that  were 
reported  since  the  last  meeting,  two  years  before. 
Colonel  Moore,  President,  elected  first  at  Port 
land  and  again  at  Fortress  Monroe,  died  in  January, 
1899,  at  his  home  in  Portland.  In  1862  he  re 
ceived  a  commission  as  Second  Lieutenant  of  the 
Seventeenth  Maine  and  was  mustered  out  as  Lieu 
tenant  Colonel  of  the  Regiment  in  '65.  His  mili 
tary  record  is  the  record  of  the  Seventeenth  Maine, 
through  all  the  battles  of  the  Third  Corps  and  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac.  After  the  war  he  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Maine  Legislature  and 
was  active  in  establishing  the  Gettysburg  Com 
mission  and  securing  the  erection  of  monuments 
to  the  several  regiments  that  fought  there.  His 
address  at  the  dedication  of  his  own  is  the  best 
history  of  its  service,  and  may  be  found  in  the 
volume  of  Maine  at  Gettysburg,  published  by  the 
commission. 

[    75    ] 


Another  and  no  less  memorable  death  was  that 
of  Colonel  Welling,  who  had  served  the  Union 
since  1864.  He  died  at  his  home  in  Pennington, 
N.  J.,  whither  he  had  been  carried  from  the  Sol 
diers'  Home,  Hampton,  in  the  last  days  of  his  ill 
ness.  The  resolutions  presented  at  the  meeting, 
are  not  found,  but  his  eulogy  is  the  record  of  the 
Third  Corps  Union,  that  he  loved  with  a  devotion 
passing  that  of  any  other  comrade.  A  subscrip 
tion  was  made  to  erect  a  monument  to  his  memory 
and  the  sum  of  three  hundred  and  thirty  dollars 
was  raised  for  that  purpose.  It  was  an  obelisk  of 
Barre  granite,  seven  feet  and  five  inches  high, 
with  the  name  Welling  on  the  face  and  the  Corps 
Badge  at  the  top.  A  bronze  tablet  inserted  gave 
the  following  record: — "Surgeon  of  the  Third 
New  Jersey  Volunteer  Regiment,  June  twenty- 
fifth,  1 86 1.  Surgeon  of  the  Eleventh  New  Jersey 
Volunteer  Regiment,  July  nineteenth,  1862.  Sur 
geon  in  charge  of  Third  Corps  Hospitals,  after  the 
battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Va.  Secretary  of  the 
Third  Army  Corps  Union  for  thirty-three  years. 
Surgeon  in  chief  of  the  National  Guard,  State  of 
New  Jersey.  Medical  Director  of  the  National 
Soldiers'  Home,  Hampton,  Virginia."  A  smaller 
tablet  bore  the  legend,  "Erected  by  the  members 
of  the  Third  Army  Corps  Union,  1900." 

Another  loss  was  that  of  General  Albert  Ord- 
way,  who  while  not  an  active  member  of  the  Union 
was  well  known  to  most  of  the  comrades  and  had 
actively  worked  to  make  our  meetings  in  Washing 
ton  successful.  General  Ordway  was  born  in  Bos 
ton  and  when  the  war  came  was  commissioned  as 
First  Lieutenant  of  the  Twenty-fourth  Massachu- 

[     76     1 


setts  Regiment.  He  was  Adjutant  General  on  the 
staff  of  General  Henry  Prince,  when  in  command 
of  the  Second  Division  of  the  Third  Corps.  He 
returned  to  his  regiment  after  the  Mine  Run 
campaign  and  was  attached  to  the  staff  of  General 
Alfred  Terry,  commanding  the  Tenth  Corps.  He 
was  elected  Colonel  of  his  regiment  when  but 
twenty-one  years  of  age  and  was  in  command  at 
Bermuda  Hundred  in  1864.  After  the  war  he 
commanded  the  Militia  of  the  District  of  Colum 
bia.  He  was  buried  with  military  honors  in  the 
Arlington  Cemetery. 

Yet  another  was  General  De  Trobriand  who  al 
though  not  well  known  at  any  of  the  meetings  after 
the  war,  will  be  remembered  as  prominent  in  the 
early  history  of  the  Union  and  one  of  the  few 
general  officers  of  the  Corps  who  were  with  its 
remnants  at  the  close  of  the  conflict.  At  the 
great  review  in  Washington  he  commanded  a 
brigade  of  the  Division  commanded  by  General 
Mott,  that  is  thus  eulogized  by  General  Francis 
A.  Walker. 

"And  now,  under  Gershom  Mott,  advances  the 
last  division  of  the  great  infantry  column,  made 
up  of  the  survivors  of  the  magnificent  divisions 
of  Kearny  and  Hooker.  Its  three  brigades,  under 
De  Trobriand,  Pierce  and  McAllister,  tried  in  the 
fire  of  more  than  thirty  battles,  comprise  a  wealth 
of  courage  and  discipline  never  surpassed  in  the 
history  of  the  war.  These  are  the  men  of  Wil- 
liamsburg  and  Seven  Pines,  of  Glendale  and  Bris- 
tow  Station,  of  Manassas  and  Chantilly,  of  Chan- 
cellorsville  and  the  Peach  Orchard,  of  Gettysburg; 
who  on  the  opening  of  the  campaign  of  sixty-four, 

[     77     ] 


leaving  their  old  associations  with  passionate 
regret,  carried  into  their  new  relation  the  same 
devoted  loyalty,  the  same  fiery  yet  steadfast 
courage,  which  had  made  the  name  of  the  Third 
Corps  the  synonym  of  soldierly  virtue." 

Count  Phillippe  Regis  De  Trobriand  came  to 
America  in  1841.  He  was  editing  the  Revue  de 
Nouveau  Monde  and  the  Courier  des  Etats  Unis  in 
1 86 1.  He  was  made  Colonel  of  the  fifty-fifth 
New  York  in  1861;  and  the  following  year  trans 
ferred  to  the  Thirty-eighth  and  mustered  out  in 
November  of  1863.  Brigadier  General  in  1864, 
Brevet  Major  General  in  1865  for  highly  meritori 
ous  services  in  the  last  campaign,  terminating 
with  the  surrender  of  the  insurgent  army  under 
General  Lee.  Colonel  of  the  Thirty-first  Infan 
try  in  1866;  of  the  Thirteenth  in  1869,  retired 
May  1879.  His  book,  "  Four  Years  with  the  Army 
of  the  Potomac,"  written  in  French  and  published 
in  Paris,  is  most  interesting  but  seldom  referred 
to  as  an  authority  by  later  writers. 

As  this  meeting  adjourned  it  was  with  the 
expectation  that  the  Hooker  monument,  in  Boston 
would  be  ready  to  dedicate  in  1901,  and  Captain 
Gragg  was  assigned  to  bring  all  the  influence 
possible  on  the  committee  in  charge,  to  have  the 
ceremony  on  the  fifth  of  May. 

In  1900  the  meeting  was  in  Gettysburg.  It  was 
a  large  gathering  and  there  were  many  ladies  and 

e;ntlemen  who  were  not  members  of  the  society, 
eneral  Hobart  Ward  and  Colonel  Walker  of  the 
Fourth  Maine,  the  oldest  living  member  of  the 
Union  and  probably  of  the  Corps,  were  especially 
welcomed  as  strangers  at  our  meetings.     General 

[     78     ] 


Collis  had  but  lately  finished  a  house  on  Seminary 
Ridge,  close  to  the  Confederate  line,  that  he  named 
"Red  Patch",  where  he  entertained  lavishly  dur 
ing  the  two  days  of  the  reunion.  Both  riding  and 
walking  parties  explored  the  battlefield,  with  and 
without  guides,  and  the  utmost  enjoyment  was 
expressed  by  all  as  the  result.  The  Gettysburg 
Commission,  consisting  of  General  Sickles,  Colonel 
Nicholson,  and  Major  Robin  of  the  Confederate 
Army,  were  present  and  in  many  places  gave  talks 
of  their  experiences  and  explained  the  special 
features  of  many  localities. 

Chaplain  Joseph  H.  Twichell  was  chosen  Presi 
dent  and  General  McKeever,  Vice  President. 
Captain  William  H.  Howard  was  elected  Secre 
tary.  Six  new  members  were  admitted  and  the 
death  of  eight  was  announced.  Among  them  was 
General  George  H.  Sharpe,  who  was  President  of 
the  Union  in  1875  and  '76.  He  was  a  Captain  in 
the  Twentieth  Militia,  Colonel  of  the  One  Hun 
dred  and  Twentieth  New  York  in  1862;  Brevet 
Brigadier  General  in  1864;  Major  General  in  1865. 
He  was  for  a  long  period  the  Assistant  Provost 
Marshall  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  on  the  staff 
of  the  General  commanding  the  army. 

Another  was  General  George  W.  West,  Colonel 
of  the  Seventeenth  Maine.  He  was  brevetted  Bri 
gadier  in  December  of  1864  for  his  services  in  the 
Wilderness.  After  the  war  special  Pension  Ex 
aminer  for  the  District  of  New  York. 

Another,  Henry  John  Madill,  Major  of  the 
Sixth  Pennsylvania  Reserves  and  Colonel  of  the 
One  hundred  and  forty-first  in  1862;  Brevet  Briga 
dier  in  1864  for  services  before  Petersburg  and 

[     79     ] 


Major  General  in  1865.  The  names  of  others  were 
Major  Edward  T.  Rowell  of  the  Second  Sharp 
Shooters;  Captain  James  K.  Holmes  of  the  One 
Hundred  and  Twentieth  New  York;  Captain 
William  J.  Kay  of  the  Seventieth  New  York  and 
Assistant  Surgeons  W.  S.  Lamb  of  the  Eighth  and 
George  T.  Ribble  of  the  Eleventh  New  Jersey 
regiments. 

A  resolution  was  presented  by  General  Tremain 
expressing  appreciation  of  the  work  done  by  the 
Gettysburg  Park  Commission  and  requesting  Con 
gress  to  make  liberal  appropriation  for  the  continu 
ance  of  the  work. 

The  dinner  was  served  at  the  Hotel  Gettysburg, 
at  which  General  Mathews  presided.  While  it 
left  much  to  be  desired  the  enthusiasm  made 
amends  for  other  deficiencies  and  the  speeches 
of  Generals  Sickles,  Ward,  Collis  and  others  and 
a  poem  by  the  daughter  of  Captain  Foote,  were 
a  most  satisfactory  ending  of  the  reunion. 

In  1901  the  meeting  was  in  Hartford,  Con 
necticut.  General  Tremain  was  elected  President 
and  General  McKeever,  Vice  President.  The 
report  of  the  Committee  on  the  monument  to 
Colonel  Welling  showed  a  deficit  of  one  hundred 
and  seventy-two  dollars,  and  asked  that  it  be  pro 
vided  for  from  the  funds  of  the  society.  The 
attempt  to  pay  the  sum  from  the  Permanent  Fund 
failed  of  approval  and  it  was  provided  for  out  of 
the  Contingent  Fund  with  the  aid  of  a  few  addi 
tional  subscriptions. 

Three  new  members  were  elected  and  the  death 
of  three  announced. 

General  Joseph  Hooker  Wood,  who  joined  the 

r  so  i 


Union  at  Hadley,  was  a  private  in  the  Second  U.  S. 
Cavalry  in  1863,  promoted  to  Second  Lieutenant 
of  the  Sixth  and  made  Major  of  the  Fifteenth  New 
York  in  1863.  In  1865  he  was  Lieutenant  Colonel 
of  the  Second  New  York  Mounted  Rifles  and  in 
1864  First  Lieutenant  of  the  Sixth  U.  S.  Cavalry. 
He  was  brevetted  for  gallantry  at  Gettysburg  and 
in  the  campaigns  against  the  Sioux  Indians. 

General  John  Ramsey  was  Captain  of  the  Fifth 
New  Jersey  in  1861,  Major  in  the  following  year 
and  Colonel  of  the  Eighth  New  Jersey  in  1863. 
Brevetted  Brigadier  and  Major  General  in  sixty- 
four  and  five.  Surgeon  Robert  V.  K.  Montfort 
was  of  the  One  Hundred  and  twenty-fourth  New 
York  and  after  the  war  a  conspicuous  citizen  of 
Newburg,  where  he  served  as  Superintendent  of 
the  Public  Schools  for  thirty  years. 

The  dinner  at  the  Allyn  House  was  most  en 
joyable.  The  guests  were  Generals  Hawley, 
Dwight,  Greene,  and  Admiral  Bunce.  A  quartette 
of  the  Yale  Glee  Club  enlivened  the  occasion,  in 
addition  to  the  orchestra. 

On  the  following  day  those  who  remained  were 
taken,  by  invitation  of  Colonel  Albert  Pope,  in 
automobiles  to  his  factory  and  shown  over  the 
premises  by  his  son.  One  feature  of  the  occasion 
was  the  turning  out  of  the  fire  brigade  by  giving 
an  unexpected  alarm.  On  the  return  trip  a  stop 
was  made  at  the  State  House  where  we  were  re 
ceived  by  the  Governor  and  introduced  by  Gen 
eral  Sickles.  Possibly  this  was  the  first  time  many 
of  us  had  ridden  in  automobiles,  certainly  the  first 
when  they  had  been  offered  to  us  as  a  body. 

In  1902  the  meeting  was  in  New  York.     Gen- 


eral  Tremain  was  re-elected  and  General  O'Beirne 
was  elected  Vice  President.  The  deaths  of  Gen 
eral  Chauncey  McKeever,  General  William  J.  Sew- 
all,  General  Butterfield  and  Colonel  John  Leonard, 
were  announced. 

General  McKeever  had  been  one  of  the  Vice- 
Presidents  and  a  frequenter  of  the  meetings.  He 
graduated  from  West  Point  in  1845  anc^  na(^ 
reached  the  rank  of  First  Lieutenant  of  Artillery 
in  1 86 1  when  he  was  appointed  Captain  and  A.  A. 
G.  He  was  promoted  through  the  several  grades, 
remaining  an  Adjutant  General  and  serving  not 
ably  with  General  McDowell.  He  was  brevetted 
Colonel  and  Brigadier  and  after  the  war  was  at 
the  War  Department  in  Washington,  retiring  in 

i893. 

William  Joyce  Sewall  was  Captain  of  the  Fifth 
New  Jersey  in  1861  and  subsequently  Lieutenant 
Colonel  and  Colonel,  resigning  to  become  Colonel 
of  the  Thirty-eighth  in  1864.  He  was  brevetted 
Brigadier  and  Major  General  and  received  the 
medal  of  honor  for  his  services  at  Chancellorsville. 

Colonel  Leonard  was  a  private  in  the  Regular 
Army  in  1861  and  became  a  Captain  in  the  Seventy- 
second  New  York  and  filled  the  grades  to  Lieuten 
ant  Colonel  in  1863.  He  was  Captain  in  the  Vet 
eran  Reserve  Corps  and  Lieutenant  in  the  Forty- 
third  U.  S.  Infantry,  receiving  brevets  for  Fred- 
ericksburg  and  Gettysburg.  He  was  retired  in 
1870.  He  was  a  native  of  Ireland. 

Other  deaths  were  Major  Chesney  Manning, 
U.  S.  A.  who  had  been  Sergeant  Major  of  the  First 
Massachusetts;  Philip  A.  Woodfin,  Governor  of 
the  Soldiers'  Home  at  Hampton,  who  became  a 

[     82     ] 


member  at  our  meeting  at  Fortress  Monroe;  Cap 
tain  David  M.  Watt;  Surgeon  G.  D.  O'Farrell; 
Major  Charles  C.  Jones  and  Lieutenant  James  H. 
Lockwood. 

The  account  of  the  Treasurer  showed  a  deficit 
and  the  propriety  of  using  the  Permanent  Fund 
again  came  up  for  discussion.  It  being  preferred 
to  a  committee  for  consideration,  it  reported: 
"That  no  purpose  to  which  it  could  be  devoted 
would  give  more  satisfaction  than  its  use  in  de 
fraying  the  expenses  of  the  annual  meetings." 

The  meeting  of  1903  was  held  in  Boston  on 
the  twenty-sixth  of  June.  If  there  was  a  meeting 
of  the  Directors-  on  the  fifth  of  May  it  was  not 
recorded.  Elaborate  preparations  were  made  by 
the  local  committee  but  the  Corps  meeting  and 
dinner  were  swallowed  up  by  the  presence  of  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac  Society. 

There  was  a  misunderstanding  as  to  the  busi 
ness  meeting,  many  of  the  comrades  expecting  it 
would  be  held  in  Faneuil  Hall,  but  the  Secretary 
and  several  of  the  Directors  met  at  the  Bellevue, 
the  headquarters  of  the  Corps,  and  in  the  absence 
of  both  President  and  Vice,  were  called  to  order 
by  Major  Shreve,  who  presided.  General  Tre- 
main  was  re-elected  and  Mr.W.  E.Cloudmanmade 
Vice  President,  the  first  enlisted  man  to  hold  the 
position. 

The  Secretary  announced  the  deaths  of  General 
Collis,  Captain  W.  P.  Drury  and  Colonel  Stoughton. 
General  Charles  H.  T.  Collis  was  born  in  Ireland. 
From  the  captaincy  of  an  independent  company 
of  Zouaves,  in  1861,  he  became  Colonel  of  the  One 
hundred  and  fourteenth  Pennsylvania  in  1862, 

[     83     ] 


Brevet  Brigadier  General  in  1864  and  Major 
General  in  1865.  He  was  awarded  the  medal  of 
honor  for  gallantry  at  Fredericksburg.  His  regi 
ment  is  remembered  principally  because  it  was 
.uniformed  as  Zouaves  and  detailed  at  the  head 
quarters  of  General  Birney  at  Sulphur  Springs  in 
1863,  and  afterwards  at  those  of  General  Meade. 
It  had  a  band  and  that  attracted  many  by  its  con 
certs  and  dress  parades.  It  saw  some  righting 
later  around  Petersburg  and  had  established  its 
reputation  at  Gettysburg,  Fredericksburg  and 
Chancellorsville.  In  civil  life  General  Collis  was 
Solicitor  of  Philadelphia,  and  for  fifteen  years 
director  of  that  city's  trusts.  He  removed  later 
to  New  York  where  he  became  Commissioner  of 
Public  Works  under  Mayor  Strong.  His  burial 
was,  at  his  own  request,  at  Gettysburg. 

Colonel  Homer  R.  Stoughton  was  Lieutenant 
Colonel  of  the  Second  Sharp  Shooters,  having 
raised  a  company,  of  which  he  was  Captain,  in 
Vermont,  and  afterwards  promoted  Major  and 
Lieutenant  Colonel,  and  would  have  been  a  full 
Colonel  had  the  regiment  not  been  reduced  to 
such  numbers  as  to  prevent  muster.  His  defence 
of  our  left,  in  skirmishing  in  front  of  Round  Top 
at  Gettysburg,  was  considered  of  great  value  and 
later  drew  the  praise  of  Colonel  W.  C.  Gates  of 
the  Fifteenth  Alabama,  who  confronted  him.  He 
was  twice  a  prisoner  of  war.  After  the  war  he 
returned  for  a  time  to  his  old  occupation  of  rail 
roading  with  the  Central  Vermont,  living  in 
Randolph,  where  he  was  postmaster.  In  1886  he 
was  Vice  President  and  General  Manager  of  the 
Shelby  Iron  Company  in  Alabama,  and  in  1892 

[     84     ] 


went  to  Cleveland,  Ohio,  where  he  was  in  the 
real  estate  business.  He  was  known  as  an  active 
worker  in  the  Sunday  Schools  wherever  he  lived. 

William  P.  Drury  was  Lieutenant  in  the  First 
Massachusetts  and  Captain  in  the  Sixty-first. 
After  the  war  he  was  for  fifteen  years  the  Chief 
of  Police  in  Chelsea,  Mass. 

Among  those  who  attended  this  meeting  was 
Colonel  George  E.  Randolph,  a  member  of  the 
first  Board  of  Directors.  No  one  recognized  him 
until  he  introduced  himself.  Since  the  war  he  had 
lived  in  Denver,  which  will  account  for  this.  The 
Union  selected  him  to  represent  the  Third  Corps 
in  the  Potomac  Society,  as  its  Vice  President. 

After  the  business  meeting  we  adjourned  to 
Faneuil  Hall,  where  the  Potomac  Society  was  in 
session,  and  after  its  adjournment  a  sail  down 
the  harbor  was  arranged,  for  those  who  cared  for 
the  water,  and  stops  were  made  at  several  of  the 
Islands  and  forts.  In  the  evening  the  dinner  was 
served  at  the  Somerset,  and  although  the  largest 
room  to  be  had,  it  was  so  crowded  that  many 
could  not  obtain  admittance. 

The  following  day  was  devoted  to  the  exercises 
of  the  Hooker  monument.  It  is  enough  to  say 
that  it  was  a  distinguished  success,  in  every  way, 
and  honored  by  the  presence  of  many  distin 
guished  soldiers  and  civilians.  The  veteran  divi 
sion  was  led  by  our  comrade  Captain  William  A. 
Smith  and  the  body  of  Hooker  men  by  another, 
Major  Henry.  A  full  account  of  the  celebration 
was  published  by  the  Commonwealth. 

It  is  well  to  allude  here  to  one  regrettable  inci 
dent  that  was  a  sequel  to  the  occasion  in  the  fol- 

[     85     ] 


lowing  year,  an  incident  that  was  magnified 
beyond  all  propriety.  The  monument  committee 
composed  largely  of  Third  Corps  men,  had  secured 
the  placing  of  a  bronze  tablet  on  the  monument, 
reciting  the  record  of  General  Hooker.  At  one  of 
the  meetings,  when  the  wording  that  was  to  pre 
cede  the  record  was  being  considered,  a  gentleman 
who  was  not  a  member  but  who  had  been  asked 
by  its  chairman  to  represent  him  upon  that  occa 
sion,  proposed  a  certain  form  that  caused  some 
friction  and  the  Third  Corps  men  withdrew  and 
the  stranger  carried  the  day.  After  the  dedication 
some  critic  found  fault  with  the  stops  and  dashes,  as 
well  as  to  the  implied  statement  that  Hooker  ever 
was  of  the  Third  Corps  himself.  This  some  of  the 
men  seized  upon  as  an  excuse  for  having  the 
tablet  removed,  utterly  ignoring  the  fact  that  by 
such  action  they  destroyed  all  visible  connection 
of  the  Corps  with  the  monument  and  deprived  it 
of  the  glory  of  having  been  instrumental  in  its 
erection. 

In  1904  the  meeting  was  at  the  Manhattan,  as 
have  been  all  of  them  since.  This  was  the  forti 
eth  annual  meeting.  Reverend  James  Boyle  was 
chosen  President  and  Captain  H.  P.  Ramsdell, 
Vice  President.  The  President  had  been  second 
Lieutenant  of  the  Thirty-seventh  New  York, 
entering  the  church  after  the  war.  The  deaths 
of  the  year  were  General  Hobart  Ward,  Major 
George  W.  Cooney,  Sidney  L.  Wilson,  George  B. 
White. 

John  Henry  Hobart  Ward  was  a  non-commis 
sioned  officer  in  the  Seventh  Infantry  in  the  Mexi 
can  War.  He  was  Colonel  of  the  Thirty-eighth 

[     86     ] 


New  York  in  1861,  and  Brigadier  General  in  1862. 
His  entire  service  was  with  the  Third  Corps  and  he 
was  perhaps  the  best  known  officer  in  the  division. 
After  the  fight  at  Spottsylvania  he  was  mustered 
out  because  of  conduct  attributed  to  him  at  the 
Wilderness,  on  the  fifth  of  May.  No  braver  sol 
dier  ever  drew  sword.  He  held  the  office  after  the 
war  of  Clerk  in  the  Superior  Court.  His  death 
was  the  result  of  a  railroad  accident. 

Major  George  W.  Cooney  was  the  commissary 
on  the  staff  of  General  Ward.  In  1861  he  was 
a  captain  in  the  Thirty-eighth  New  York  and 
Regimental  Quartermaster.  He  was  appointed  a 
commissary  of  subsistence  in  1862  and  resigned  in 
May,  1865.  Those  who  remember  him  will  pic 
ture  a  more  than  usually  handsome,  dashing  offi 
cer,  with  a  fine  voice  that  whiled  away  many  a 
lonely  hour. 

At  the  meeting  in  1905,  Sergeant  Major  Wil 
liam  H.  Cloudman  was  elected  President  and  Cap 
tain  C.  W.  Wilson,  Vice-President.  The  deaths 
during  this  year  were  General  Joseph  Dickinson, 
Colonel  Elijah  Walker,  Major  John  B.  Fassitt,  and 
Captain  Bernard  J.  Reid. 

General  Dickinson  was  First  Lieutenant  and 
Adjutant  of  the  Twenty-sixth  Pennsylvania  in 
1 86 1  and  appointed  a  captain  and  A.  A.  G.  the 
same  year.  He  was  promoted  through  the  several 
grades  to  Brigadier  General,  and  was  as  many 
times  brevetted  for  his  services  at  Williamsburg, 
Antietam,  and  Gettysburg.  He  is  best  known  for 
his  association  with  General  Hooker. 

Colonel  Walker  was,  as  has  before  been  said, 
the  oldest  man  living,  at  the  time  of  his  death, 

[     87     ] 


of  any  in  the  Corps.  His  age  was  eighty-seven 
years.  He  raised  a  company  for  the  Fourth  Maine 
Regiment  in  1861  and  was  promoted  through  all 
the  grades  to  Colonel,  in  July,  1864,  and  was  mus 
tered  out  with  the  regiment.  He  claimed  to  have 
been  present  with  his  command  in  every  battle  and 
skirmish  except  that  of  Wapping  Heights.  He  was 
four  times  wounded,  but  absent  only  on  that 
account  ninety-six  days  after  Gettysburg.  He  had 
two  horses  shot  under  him  and  as  many  more 
wounded.  This  was  the  regiment  originally  com 
manded  by  Hiram  G.  Berry  and  when  it  was 
mustered  out  the  colonel,  chaplain  and  one  cap 
tain  (who  was  a  prisoner)  were  the  only  repre 
sentatives  of  the  original  officers.  Colonel  Walker 
commanded  the  brigade  on  many  occasions,  not 
ably  at  Gettysburg,  being  stationed  in  the  Devil's 
Den,  but  he  was  not  recognized  by  brevet  for 
services,  as  were  many  who  deserved  less.  He  was 
a  builder  and  carpenter  before  the  war  and  after 
the  war  was  over  he  settled  in  Somerville,  Mass, 
and  resumed  his  trade.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Common  Council  in  that  town,  and  Inspector  of 
Buildings  for  some  years. 

James  Barclay  Fassitt  was  one  of  the  staunch 
supporters  of  the  Corps  Union,  at  one  time  its 
President,  many  times  on  the  Board,  always  the 
member  of  some  committee  and  has  left  with  us 
the  memory  of  a  most  genial  comrade  and  friend. 
He  originally  enlisted  as  private  in  the  Twenty- 
third  Pennsylvania,  General  Birney's  regiment, 
whose  staff  he  joined  with  the  rank  of  A.  A.  D.  C. 
At  the  opening  of  the  Grant  campaign  he  returned 
to  his  regiment  and  did  not  participate  in  that 

[     88     ] 


movement.     As  before  told,  he  was  given  a  medal 
of  honor  many  years  after  the  war. 

President  Boyle  in  retiring  presented  the  society 
with  a  silk  headquarters  flag,  with  the  names  of 
the  Corps  battles  thereon  and  three  division  flags, 
all  enclosed  in  an  oak  case.  They  were  accepted 
with  as  much  surprise  as  pleasure,  and  many  ex 
pressions  of  gratitude,  as  well  as  a  series  of  reso 
lutions,  and  have  graced  our  dinners  every  year 
since. 

At  the  dinner,  at  which  there  were  about  one 
hundred,  General  Tremain  entertained  many 
members  of  his  old  regiment  and  presented  every 
one  with  a  copy  of  his  new  book,  "Two  Days  of 
War."  Colonel  John  McCook  was  among  the 
after  dinner  speakers. 

The  meeting  of  1906  was  called  to  order  by 
President  Cloudman  who  came  from  the  far  west, 
as  has  been  his  habit  for  years,  to  attend  the 
gathering.  General  Sickles  was  elected  President 
once  more  and  Captain  Wilson  re-elected.  The 
deaths  announced  were  Colonel  McMichael,  Cap 
tains  Tutein,  Butler  and  Vance. 

Clayton  McMichael,  the  son  of  the  well-known 
Morton  McMichael,  was  appointed  to  the  regular 
army  and  ordered  to  the  staff  of  General  Birney  in 
1863.  It  was  the  expectation  that  he  would  be 
appointed  the  mustering  officer  of  the  division,  as 
at  the  time  only  regular  officers  were  eligible  to 
the  position,  but  before  he  arrived  from  the  west 
the  rule  was  modified  and  a  volunteer  rattled 
round  in  the  office.  He  was  one  of  the  four  staff 
officers  who  started  with  Birney  in  May,  1864, 
and  arrived  at  Petersburg  in  June.  For  much  of 

[    89    ] 


the  time  he  served  as  A.  A.  G.  but  soon  after 
reaching  Petersburg  he  was  compelled  to  leave 
because  of  sickness  and  although  he  returned  and 
was  with  General  Birney  when  he  went  to  the 
command  of  the  Tenth  Corps,  he  did  not  return 
after  Birney's  death.  He  was  on  detached  service 
as  recruiting  officer  and  resigned  in  September, 
1865.  In  civil  life  in  Philadelphia  he  was  a  promi 
nent  figure,  as  his  father  had  been  before  him.  He 
assumed  the  editorship  of  the  North  American, 
was  Marshall  of  the  District  of  Columbia  under 
Arthur,  Post  Master  and  City  Treasurer  of  Phila 
delphia  and  appointed  by  General  Grant  one  of 
the  commissioners  to  the  International  Exposition 
at  Vienna  in  1875.  He  was  ever  active  in  city, 
state  and  national  politics,  and  had  the  acquain 
tance  of  all  the  noted  men  of  the  day. 

The  meeting  of  1907  was  presided  over  by  Vice 
President  Wilson  in  the  absence  of  General  Sickles. 
Captain  Wilson  was  elected  President  and  Captain 
Charles  W.  Buchanan,  Vice  President.  The  death 
roll  was  a  startling  one. 

General  J.  Watts  De  Peyster,  honorary  mem 
ber,  was  well  known  as  the  desired  historian  of 
the  Corps,  he  having  written  much  of  its  story 
in  detached  pamphlets  and  magazine  articles.  A 
member  of  innumerable  societies  his  career  was 
embalmed  in  scores  of  resolutions  and  newspapers 
at  home  and  abroad. 

Colonel  Moses  B.  Lakeman  of  the  Third  Maine 
was  Captain,  Major,  Lieutenant  Colonel  and  Colo 
nel  of  the  Regiment.  He  served  with  recognized 
ability  and  was  one  of  the  soldiers  of  whom  the 

[    90    ] 


Corps  need  never  be  ashamed.  After  the  war  he 
was  in  the  customs  service  until  his  death. 

The  others  can  only  be  named,  although  their 
records  are  every  way  as  worthy: — Colonel  N.  N. 
Shatswell,  First  Massachusetts  Heavy  Artillery, 
Colonel  John  N.  Coyne,  who  had  been  on  the 
Board  of  Directors  and  was  well  remembered  for 
his  paper  on  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg,  that  was 
printed  by  the  Union,  Captains  James  Gillen, 
George  S.  Follansbee,  Lieutenant  Samuel  Dalton 
and  Sergeant  Ellis  H.  Timm. 

For  the  meeting  of  1908  Captain  Wilson  made 
a  stirring  appeal  that  undoubtedly  brought  out 
some  who  else  had  remained  away.  Lieutenant 
Charles  J.  Buchanan  was  elected  President  and 
Major  Thomas  Bradley,  Vice  President.  Captain 
Bradley  was  an  old  member  but  had  not  been  an 
attendant  at  the  meetings  of  the  Union,  and  had 
never  held  office  before. 

The  following  deaths  were  announced.  Gen 
eral  George  W.  Mindil  was  by  birth  a  German.  In 
1 86 1  he  was  Lieutenant  and  Captain  in  the 
Twenty-third  Pennsylvania,  transferred  to  the 
Sixty-first  in  1862.  Then  Colonel  of  the  Twenty- 
seventh  New  Jersey,  (said  to  have  been  the  young 
est  colonel  in  the  army.)  Brevet  Brigadier  Gen 
eral  for  services  during  the  campaign  from  Savan 
nah  to  Goldsboro,  N.  C.,  Major  General  for  ser 
vices  in  the  battles  of  Chattanooga,  Mission  Ridge 
and  Mill  Creek.  Awarded  medal  of  honor  for 
having,  in  June  1863,  volunteered  the  services  of 
his  regiment  after  the  term  of  its  service  had  ex 
pired,  and  a  second  medal  for  services  at  the  battle 


91 


of  Williamsburg,  May  fifth,  1862,  while  serving 
as  aid  on  the  staff  of  General  Kearny.  For  many 
years  after  muster  out  he  held  a  responsible  posi 
tion  as  examiner  of  diamonds  and  precious  stones 
in  the  New  York  Custom  House. 

Major  George  E.  Henry,  First  Massachusetts 
and  Major  of  the  Veteran  Reserve  Corps  headed 
the  body  of  Hooker's  men  in  the  celebration  of 
unveiling  of  the  monument  in  Boston.  His  ser 
vice  was  continuous  and  there  was  no  battle  in 
which  his  command  took  part  that  he  was  not 
conspicuous.  He  was  on  the  staffs  of  General 
Carr  and  General  Mott,  A.  A.  G.  to  General  Dent, 
commanding  the  Washington  garrison  and  later 
at  the  headquarters  of  the  Freedman's  Bureau. 
The  length  of  his  service  was  over  six  years  and 
he  retired  broken  in  health  and  suffering  from 
wounds  received  in  action. 

Dr.  Armand  Duffloo  had  served  on  our  board 
and  was  a  constant  attendant  at  the  meetings. 
He  had  been  Surgeon  of  the  Seventieth  New  York. 
Both  he  and  General  Mindil  were  at  the  meeting 
of  1907. 

Others  were  Colonel  Edward  R.  Bowen  of  the 
One  hundred  and  fourteenth  Pennsylvania;  Colo 
nel  Brownell  Granger  died  in  Sidney,  N.  S.  where 
he  had  lived  since  retiring.  From  a  captaincy  in 
the  Eleventh  Massachusetts  he  was  appointed  a 
commissary  of  subsistence  and  served  on  the  staff 
of  General  Hooker  for  a  time,  also  in  the  depart 
ment  of  the  Susquehanna.  He  was  brevetted 
Major.  Lieutenant  Henry  E.  Kinsman  was  Lieu 
tenant  in  the  First  Sharp  Shooters;  Lieutenant 
Richard  Cooper  in  the  Seventh  New  Jersey. 

[     92     ] 


One  of  the  guests  of  the  dinner  was  Hon.  John 
S.  Wise,  son  of  the  former  Governor  and  General 
Wise,  of  Virginia,  formerly  a  Confederate  boy 
soldier,  his  experiences  in  the  army  being  given 
in  his  book  "The  End  of  an  Era",  most  enter 
tainingly.  He  is  a  most  admirable  speaker  and 
story  teller  and  quite  at  home  with  the  blue  as 
the  gray.  General  King  read  a  poem  of  which 
the  following  is  a  stanza: — 

"Hail  to  the  Chief!  Our  loving  friend, 
May  many  years  be  thine; 
We  toast  thee  in  our  heart  of  hearts 
And  not  alone  in  wine. 
The  land  for  which  you  fought  and  bled, 
Will  cherish  aye  your  name, 
And  write  it  high  among  those  born 
To  everlasting  fame." 

The  meeting  of  1909  was  held  on  May  third. 
Chaplain  William  R.  Eastman  was  named  for 
President  and  Major  James  H.  Everett,  Vice 
President. 

The  Secretary  announced  that  there  had  been 
nine  deaths  during  the  year.  William  Conway  was 
Lieutenant  and  Captain  of  the  Seventy-fourth  New 
York,  Second  Lieutenant  of  the  Sixteenth  Infan 
try  in  1866  and  Captain  in  1879.  He  was  bre- 
vetted  for  service  in  the  Indian  campaign  and 
Spring  Creek,  Montana,  in  1876  and  retired  in 
1894. 

Colonel  C.  C.  Rivers  of  the  Eleventh  Massa 
chusetts  saw  service  from  Bull  Run  to  Appomattox, 
had  five  commissions  signed  by  Governor  Andrew, 
was  wounded  at  Gettysburg,  commanded  a  brigade 

[     93     1 


and  was  never  given  the  credit  of  a  brevet.  In 
civil  life  he  was  in  the  Boston  Custom  House. 

Captain  Benjamin  Murphy  had  been  President 
of  the  Union  in  1893.  He  enlisted  as  private  in 
the  Eighth  New  Jersey  and  was  made  first  Lieu 
tenant.  For  many  years  he  was  Chief  of  Police  of 
Jersey  City. 

Captain  William  A.  Smith  was  of  the  First 
Massachusetts.  Later  he  was  with  the  Fortieth. 
Was  severely  wounded  at  Drury's  Bluff.  In  the 
Boston  celebration  he  headed  the  Veteran  Division. 

Colonel  Charles  H.  Weygant  had  been  presi 
dent  in  1890  and  at  the  time  of  the  reunion  in 
Newburg  in  1898  was  Mayor  of  that  city.  As  a 
captain  in  the  regiment  known  as  "The  Orange 
Blossoms"  he  came  into  prominence  at  Gettys 
burg,  where  the  colonel  and  major  of  the  regiment 
were  killed  and  the  lieutenant  colonel  so  severely 
wounded  that  he  was  reported  among  the  dead. 
He  wrote  immediately  after  the  war  a  history  of 
the  regiment,  the  One  hundred  and  twenty-fourth 
New  York,  a  book  from  which  much  of  value  can 
be  learned  of  the  movement  of  the  Third  Corps. 
Captain  Matthew  Stewart  of  the  Seventy-third 
New  York  attended  our  meetings  many  years  after 
he  was  reported  by  our  roster  as  having  passed  on. 

In  making  up  these  saddening  notices  it  is 
nevertheless  a  matter  of  regret  that  there  are  not 
more  details  of  the  lives  of  the  comrades,  espe 
cially  after  the  war.  It  will  not  be  unnoticed  that 
many  a  name  with  which  some  of  us  are  familiar 
has  not  been  mentioned  here,  but  this  is  rather  from 
lack  of  knowledge  than  an  oversight.  One  name, 
however,  arises  to  the  mind  of  the  compiler  of 

f     94     1 


these  records  as  worthy  to  be  included  even  if 
with  an  apology.  In  1887,  there  occurred  the 
death  of  General  Thomas  Washington  Eagan  of 
the  Fortieth  New  York.  His  connection  with  this 
Union  was  one  in  name  only  and  yet  there  was  no 
better  known  officer  in  the  Corps.  He  was  never 
present  at  our  meetings  and  the  excesses  of  his 
civil  life  clouded  his  brilliant  record  as  a  soldier, 
yet  out  of  justice  to  ourselves  we  should  remember 
him  as  a  brave  and  gallant  officer,  who  served 
through  the  war,  not  perhaps  to  the  extent  of  his 
ability,  but  who  at  a  critical  moment,  when  in 
command  of  a  division,  rose  to  the  demands  of 
the  occasion  with  such  sagacity  that  he  compelled 
the  plaudits  of  all  his  comrades  and  won  for  him 
self  the  brevet  of  Major  General  on  recommenda 
tion  of  General  Hancock. 

At  the  dinner  there  were  among  others,  Generals 
John  McCook,  Horatio  King  and  James  R. 
O'Bierne.  Hon.  John  S.  Wise  enjoyed  himself  so 
much  at  the  previous  dinner  that  he  returned  with 
his  wife,  daughter  and  her  husband.  P.  Tecumseh 
Sherman  was  another  who  was  as  much  at  home 
with  us  as  was  his  distinguished  father.  In  all, 
ladies  included,  between  sixty  and  seventy  sat  at 
the  tables  and  we  could  but  congratulate  ourselves 
on  the  number  we  could  muster.  Before  parting, 
the  man  we  ever  miss  the  most  was  remembered 
as  follows:—  "We,  the  members  of  the  Third  Army 
Corps  Union,  at  this  the  forty-fifth  reunion,  ex 
press  our  regret  at  the  enforced  absence  of  our 
beloved  commander  and  companion,  General 
Sickles.  We  send  our  affectionate  greeting  and 
trust  he  may  be  with  us  at  the  next  and  many 

future  reunions."         r    OR    , 
I    yD    J 


There  may  be  many  more  meetings  of  the  Union 
but  it  is  evident  that  not  many  years  hence  it 
must  be  a  Union  only  in  name.  Whatever  else 
may  shape  the  character  of  these  gatherings,  it  is 
evident  that  the  social  part  will  come  to  be  the 
whole  and  that  they  must  take  on  a  more  quiet 
character  and  lose  some  of  the  festive  element, 
as  indeed  they  have  already  begun  to  do  in  the 
last  four  or  five  years.  But  let  us  not  think  that 
this  will  be  wholly  a  loss  so  long  as  we  are  able 
to  meet  and  renew  our  youth  in  recalling  the  days 
when  we  "followed  the  flag". 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 
LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


14Apr'58JT 

REC'D  ?..D 

SENT  ON  ILL 

MAR  3  11938 

OCT  2  3  2001 

U.C.BERKELEY 

LIBRARY  USE 

AUG  1  1  1958 

'-•? 

AUG  1  1  1958 

JAN  2  5  1980 

ru  MED 

V^W"IV»*-*' 

INTERL1BRARY  LOA 

N 

LD  21A-50m-8,'57 
(C8481slO)476B 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


5109 


